A Fated Marriage
by onetinykiss
Summary: This is a Marriage Law Challenge with a onetinykiss twist. Evil brothers, hyper mothers, overprotective uncles, stupid laws and a lot of fun lead our young couple down a road to a fated marriage. HG/VK
1. Prologue

Prologue

Two announcements had been made that would change the lives of dozens of witches and wizards forever. The first was of the two was about the declining birth rates among purebloods. The average pureblood couple had one successful birth out of five, and of those births, one of every six was born a Squib. The Ministry was panicking over such statistics and had been scrambling to try to find a solution.

The second announcement was about International Relations between Britain and other countries such as France, the United States of America, Japan, Bulgaria, and Mexico. The bonds of friendship between the six countries were particularly strong during the war against the Dark Lord. The friendships lasted, even after the victory of the light, and the nations' leaders gathered together to try brainstorm ways to demonstrate to the public their newly strengthened bonds.

After many talks and great debate, they came up with an idea that would kill two birds with one stone: International Marriage Law. Each country would choose their best and brightest witch and wizard to marry the witches and wizards of the other countries. The six witches would be muggleborn, and the six wizards would be purebloods. This was decided upon to promote the idea of mixed blood marriages. All the leaders would have liked to force the Marriage Law on the entire population of their own country, so that the birth rate problem would be completely under control, but they knew such an act could lead to rebellions and overthrown governments. So instead, they made being chosen for a marriage look like a tremendous honor.

To be chosen for an international marriage meant that you were someone special and important. It was your duty to share you gifts and talents with the other people of the world. The Ministries would see that you were always taken care of and provided for; the only thing you had to do was stand up and show how proud you were to be in a marriage of mixed blood and nationalities.

Ah yes, Ministries all around the world spent a great deal of time and money to back up this persona. However, for those who actually knew the full truth of the law, it was anything but an honor. In was more of a trap. A prison without bars. For any who were chosen and refused to comply, their wands were broken and they were exiled to the Muggle world. Those who chose to accept the law would have to make equally large sacrifices. They would have to marry the partner that was chosen for them, regardless if their heart belonged to another. The Ministries argued that arranged marriages were common place all over the world, but protesters of the law retorted that those who fell into the law's jurisdiction lived in countries where a person was more or less allowed to choose their partner.

The law seemed harder on the witches. For they would have to leave their homes in order to move to their new husband's homeland. The marriage would have to be consummated within the fortnight, and a child would have to be conceived within a year after the ceremony. Since the law chose magical folk in the age range of sixteen to forty, if one of the partners was in school then they would have to drop out and find an alternate means of education.

After all was said and done, the names of couples would be announced shortly after word of the International Marriage Law spread. Although the day had no real name, everyone started to refer to it as "Engagement Day". It was on that day that the witches and wizards of many nations held their breath and waited for their fate to be announced.


	2. Announcement

Disclaimer: I still don't own any Harry Potter characters, but I do own my OC's.

Announcement

Hermione sat at the table kitchen with the Weasley family, Harry, members of the Order, and other close family friends. All were waiting for the _Daily Prophet _to arrive. There was absolutely no noise whatsoever; even the twins were unusually silent. Hermione sat in her chair with a full cup of cold coffee in her hands as she watched the window anxiously. It was a strange feeling knowing that your whole life could change with an owl and a newspaper. Once in a while she would raise the cup to her lips, but just as soon as she would take a sip the wind would rattle the window and she would jump setting the cup back down.

"Maybe you won't be chosen. I mean after all there are all millions of witches out there." Said the youngest red headed boy also known as her best friend Ron. There was some nodding in agreement though nobody else spoke up. Hermione sighed and sipped the cold coffee not trusting her-self to say anything. She was terrified that she would end spilling out to all her fears and make a fool out of herself. Or worse…that she would start crying.

Mrs. Weasley went over to the young woman to give her the kind of hug only a mother can give. The matriarch could feel her heart break for the girl, she had experience too much pain for one so young. After the Golden Trio's fourth year the Order of the Phoenix gathered as soon word had gotten out that the Dark Lord had risen again. Everyone worked nonstop to help Harry find the Horcruxes, but nobody had stayed closer to him than Ron and Hermione. The Death Eaters struck hard and fast to try to buy their lord some time. They ambushed every witch and wizard they thought could be member of the Order. The main purpose was to draw out the Boy Who Lived and his friends. Many innocent lives were taken.

When they could not draw out the three that way, they started to target those closest to the Trio. Lupin, Sirius, Tonks, Percy, and others lost their lives. Each death was another stab in the heart to those who loved them. Each death was a reminder of the evil that was trying to take over. Everyone took the losses as well as they could, knowing that death was a natural part of war. It was hardest on Harry blamed himself for the deaths. Ron and Hermione did their best to support their burdened friend; then word got to them that the Grangers had been found and killed. Hermione had stared at the letter for a long time without saying a word or shedding a tear. Then she folded the letter, tucked it in her pocket, and went back to the library to do research.

After a few months the final battle started. It came a lot sooner than everybody had expected, but it was thought that the Dark Lord had attacked when he felt the Order was still weak. Many more lives were lost, yet in the end Light prevailed and Harry Potter became the Boy Who Triumphed. The first night of true peace was filled with fireworks, dancing, drinking, laughter, and pure joy. Children were conceived that night; many of them would later be named after one of the three great Heros.

Harry became a different person after that battle. The kind of person who is fully at peace with his past, his present, and his future. He could have moved into his parents house, but he chose to live with the family he had come to know and love. Together with Hermione they were unofficially adopted into the Weasley clan. It seemed as if every witch and wizard shared his peace. The whole Wizarding world became more lively, cheerful, and peaceful after the last battle. A dark fog had been lifted from the world and it's people intended to enjoy every ray of sun they could. Only one person did not share in the celebrations and newfound feeling of freedom. She stayed quiet in her room silently mourning for those she had lost though not once did she openly.

Life became quiet and everyone settled into a comfortable routine. Since Hogwarts had closed for their fifth year the Trio was often found studying with Ginny at the kitchen table in the always wonderfully overcrowded Burrow. Then all was upset when the _Daily Prophet_ came out with the article explaining the International Marriage Law. The uproar in the house had be near chaos. Mr. Weasley and Kingsly had used some of their influence to see who might be on the list. A few names had been thrown out, but it was Hermione's name that was cause for concern. The Order had been called into its first meeting in months. All tried to come up with a way to diminish her chances of being the chosen witch from England, however there was nothing that could have been done. Not even Harry pleas to the Ministry seemed to help. All they were told was that there was no guarantee Hermione would be the chosen witch for England.

When the morning of "Engagement Day" had arrived all those who loved and respected the young witch met around the Burrow's table. There was more silent waiting in room when suddenly a tap at the window made everyone jump. calmly let the owl in and gave it a Knut tip. The paper laid the table for a while as everyone watched it. Finally Fred cleared his throat and picked it up. Flipping through it quickly he paused for a moment. "Will you look at that, the Brazilian Boldhearts beat the Japanese Jewels." He said offhandedly. There were some mummers from the men that accompanied the sound of flipping pages. Finally he stopped. Taking a deep breath he read the article out loud.

England's Honored

By

Arnold Penwick

"Over the last couple of weeks there has been a great deal of noise concerning the newly stated International Marriage Law. The entire Wizarding Community knows about it. A Muggleborn witch and a Pureblood wizard from each of the six countries, that stayed so close in friendship after the Second War, are going to marry a spouse from another country. The couples will be carefully paired up a week from today.

I will bet every Galleon I have that everybody wants to know whom the lucky and most honored from our own great country of England are. After great debate and many discussion the Pureblood wizard will be Edward Thomas Nole. Mr. Nole is thirty-two years of age and best known for his achievements broom designs. He is the creator of the Nimbus series, the Firebolt, and the newest broom to hit the market the Thunderclash. We all know he will represent England with great pride.

There was a great deal of commotion about who our Muggleborn witch would be. Many were taken into consideration, but it was finally decided that she will…"

Fred stopped in mid-sentence to stare at the paper for a moment. Everyone held their breath as they waited for him to continue. He cleared his throat and continued reading.

"There was a great deal of commotion about who our Muggleborn witch would be. Many were taken into consideration, but it was finally decided that she will Hermione Jane Granger. Miss. Granger is seventeen years of age and is best known for aiding Harry Potter in the fight against You-Know-Who. She is the youngest witch to receive an Order of Merlin First Class and is the highest ranking in her class at Hogwarts. Miss. Granger rare witch indeed whom England is greatly pleased to share with the rest of the world.

There will be more updates pertaining to the Marriage Law and our two Chosen. This has been a Penwick Report, have a nice day. "


	3. Acceptance

Oh wow…I wasn't expecting reviews so soon. I feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Thanks guys. Okay here's another chapter.

Acceptance

To say that the Weasley house was in complete and total chaos during the week after the announcement would be like saying You-Know-Who was simply a misunderstood man. There were people going in and out of the Burrow at all hours of the day. Every single one of them had a single goal in mind: Get Hermione out of her arranged marriage!

It started with Harry soon after Fred had read the article. He jumped up and stormed over to the fireplace. Without a word to anyone he Flooed over to the Ministry of Magic. and his two oldest sons shortly followed the Boy Who Triumphed on his quest to confront the people who had just so drastically changed his friend's life. They were gone for several hours, and when they finally came home the three red heads and Harry all looked like someone had broken their favorite broomstick.

While they were gone, doing Merlin only knows, Ron had taken it upon himself to reassure everyone that this was a mistake. The Ministry could not choose Hermione because she was the smartest witch to grace the halls of Hogwarts in over three centuries. Taking her away from school would be a great disservice to the whole Wizarding community. After all she was planning on becoming a Healer and she was going to come up with a ton cures for the world. Taking away her education would have a huge negative effect on the world. Of course his explanation was not nearly that eloquent and it involved a lot more swearing and smacks over the head from his mum.

After his finished his speech the twins argued that her brains were the very reason she was chosen in the first place. And would he please just shut the bloody hell up?! Needless to say that sparked a shouting match and a few coffee cups went flying in the air. When one of the pink cups broke went in a rage and shouted at the boys. When she was done they all shut up and hung their heads in shame. Nobody could make you feel guiltier than a Weasley woman.

During all the noise everyone failed to see that there was one person who was silent the entire time. Hermione never said a word about the article after it was read and she never mentioned it afterwards. Deep in her heart she knew that if Harry was unable to achieve anything than nobody would, unless they were Merlin himself. So the night her fate had been printed in the paper she went the garden alone and cried. She cried for her parents, for her freedom that had been taken from her, for other witches and wizards who's lives would never be the same, and for herself simply because she needed to cry. She allowed herself that one night of crying and feeling sorry for herself. However when she was done she quickly composed herself and went back to bed, vowing to make the best of whatever came her way.

For the remainder of the week the family went into a quiet, tense sort of acceptance. Finally the day arrived for the young lioness to meet her future husband. She dressed in a white spaghetti strap sundress with an elegant red ribbon tied around her waist. Her hair had been tamed, with the help of a charmed brush, and tied back with a matching ribbon. Around her neck a small ruby teardrop pendent on a silver chain. She took one look at herself in the mirror and sighed, "Oh you look lovely dear. He's a lucky one." The sweet antique mirror told her giving her a reason to smile a little.

She walked down stairs to meet Mr. and Mrs. Weasley who were acting as her guardians. Standing in a very solemn row was the seven Weasley children, Harry, members of the Order, and even some of the staff from Hogwarts. All looked like they were witnessing a funeral. Hermione tried to put on brave smile and find some humor in her situation, "Oh come on guys. It's not like I'm dying. I'm just getting engaged." She said with a little laugh. There was still silence, but finally it was broken with Harry's soft chuckle. Even when her whole life was changing faster than a Firebolt Hermione could still put on a brave Gryffindor face.

"Your right. Today should be happy, and just look at you! You look absolutely lovely." He gave her a kiss on the forehead. "I can't believe my little sister is getting engaged." He said with a small hug. Ever since the news of her parents arrived Harry referred to Hermione as his sister. Everyone soon followed his lead and offered the young woman words of congratulations, encouragement, and luck.

Hermione had to wipe away a few tears from her eyes as the people she loved showed her how much they cared. After it seemed like the hugs and kisses would never end pulled the girl away from everybody. "Now enough of that. You don't want to wrinkle that pretty dress of hers." She told everyone while fixing the red bows.

Hermione gave everyone one last smile, "I'll be back for dinner. So you don't have to worry about me." With that she walked though the fireplace. Taking a pinch of Floo powder she nearly shouted, " the Ministry of Magic" and stepped though.

She really hated the feeling she got when using the Floo Network, so she tightly closed her eyes waiting for her journey to end. Suddenly she felt herself land with a thud yet it did not feel like the floor that she was laying on. "I know that traveling by Floo is not the most pleasant of experiences and landing can be the most difficult part. However do you mind getting off of me? I can't reach my glasses." A voice came from under her.

Hermione opened her eyes and quickly rolled off of the person she had landed on. Under her was a man in his early thirties. He was fit, but not toned. You could see the beginning wrinkles around his mouth and eyes, although it was easy to tell that they were caused by many smiles. His brown hair, with the slightest hint of gray, matched his warm chocolate eyes. He was good looking. Not handsome, but his smile was very nice.

"I'm sorry. I really didn't mean land on top of anyone! You're not hurt are you?" she said getting up and handing him his wire-rimmed glasses. He took his glasses and stood up.

"No harm done. I need something to get my mind off of today." He said wiping his glasses. "I'm afraid I'm about to be engaged. Dreadful thing really." He said sighing. "My name is Edward Thomas Nole." He told her offering her his hand.

She laughed a little giving his hand a gentle shake. "I know how you feel. I'm Hermione Granger."

Before he could say anything else to her warm motherly arms wrapped around her. "Oh dear. I'm afraid we went to the wrong place. Somehow we ended up at Mister Minrey's Potions Palace…" The matriarch hugged the girl so tightly the she started to choke.

"Molly. Molly you're killing the poor thing." Arthur told his wife gently.

When Hermione caught her breath she introduced her guardians to her fellow victim.

While pleasantries were exchanged a Ministry official walked up to them. "Excuse me, but Selected must follow me for the Matches." He told everybody. Hermione's guardians gave her one last hug and she walked down the hall with Edward to go meet her fate and future husband. It seemed to take forever, but they finally reached the room where everyone was meeting. There was a bunch of people in there that she assumed that they were all Ministry officials and the other Selected. She felt very alone and very small, that is until she heard one voice call her name.

"Hermione?"

"Viktor!"

All right. I'll have another chapter up in a few days where you'll meet the other Selected and see whom ends up with whom.


	4. Introductions

A/N: Okay I'm going to say this before anyone yells at me for it. I am really really bad at doing accents. REALLY BAD. So please don't expect everyone to be talking fancy. I just can't do it. Okay I can do it a little, but not a lot. Now on with the story!

Introductions

"Viktor!" Hermione looked at the Bulgarian Seeker in total and utter shock. He was the same as she last remembered, yet different. He still had the same broken looking nose, and short haircut. However in the two years since they last saw each other he had defiantly filled out. He had gained a lot of muscle, but he didn't look bulky because his newfound height balanced everything out. There was still a seriousness about him that made him slightly intimidating at first glance. There was not question on why the girls still swooned over him.

"Hermione." Her name came out slowly as if he was trying to get every syllable of her name just right. His entire aura softened as he went over to her with a small smile on his face. "Vhat are you doing here?" He asked though he had a good hunch that he already knew the answer to that question. He was there for the same reason, that stupid marriage law. He was chosen to be the pureblood wizard of Bulgaria. His family was an old one with a long line of powerful magical blood. That back round, his fame, and fortune made him an obvious choice.

"I'm here to be engaged. I was chosen for that marriage law. And I'm guessing that's why you are here as well." She said quietly. He nodded to confirm that fact while looking her over. She blushed shifting a little as she felt his eyes looking her up and down. She filled out quiet a bit. Her chest had grown some. Nothing overwhelming, but just right to make her curvy. Her hair looked silkier and farmed her face nicely. She was still so small compared to him physically that she had to tilt her head to meet his eyes. Even after all the pain he knew she dealt with during the Second War her smile was still seemed to brighten up the room.

"Now I am glad to be here. It gives me another chance to see you." He told the young woman. He was about to say something else when some walked up to him.

"Excuse me for interrupting, but I'm making it my mission to meet all the lovely ladies here." A tall guy cut in. He was classically handsome. Short blonde hair, blue eyes, and broad shouldered, medium height. "My name is Michael St. Paul. I am zee wizard from France." He introduced himself to Hermione. She knew that name, but than again who didn't. He was the wizard known from some of the most powerful wandless magic in the world.

She gave newcomer a polite smile though she really just wanted to ignore him and keep talking to Viktor. "It is a pleasure to meet you Mr. St. Paul. I'm Hermione Granger." She said offering him her hand. He took it and gave it a kiss that lingered a bit too long for her liking. Instantly she knew that if she got pair up with this wizard than she would voluntary break her wand. Something about his arrogant charm just made her want to be sick.

He smiled back not noticing her own smile seem a bit forced and frozen in place. Viktor DID notice and had to cough in order to hide a chuckle. "Miss. Granger I ave a feeling zat you will become zee next Mrs. Michael St. Paul. Do you not a feel zat connection as well?" he asked her. The poor witch could do nothing but smile politely and look to the Bulgarian Seeker for help. That did no good because he was too busy "coughing".

"Well it's been a pleasure meeting you Mr. St. Paul, but I would like to meet the others." She said trying to get way from the Frenchmen.

"Zat will not be a problem. I'll just tell you who zey are. You were the last to arrive and I ave ad a chance to meet everybody." Michael told her wrapping an arm around her with a smug grin on his face. Hermione's whole body stiffened and Viktor's coughing fit suddenly stopped. Michael was blissfully unaware of the sudden change in body language, so he went about telling Hermione who was also was tangled up in the Marriage Law web.

"Over zere is zee Americans. Jason Smith, age 31. He is famous his advances in Animagus transformations. He's the only person in zee world who can transform into five animals. And zee young woman next to him is Sara Black, age 27. She is famous for coming up with magical ways to make cooking easier and faster. All of zee housewives in America are half in love with her." He said pointing two people. The man had brown hair cut short. He was about Viktor's height, but his build was a bit softer. His eyes were forest green behind wire-rimmed glasses, and his skinned showed that he did not see the sun very often. Sara was almost the complete opposite. She shorter, but she was bursting to the brim with a healthy glow. Her eyes and hair were the color of her last name.

Next he pointed to a blond woman who was talking to a brunette. "Zee taller one is Maria St. Paul, my older sister. She is 35 and she like me is famous for wandless magic. It is a talent zat runs in zee family. Zee woman she is talking to is woman from Mexico. Isabella Montoya, age 39." He said her age like it was a flesh eating virus or something. "She is zee oldest one chosen. She actually started zat new art. You know of Magical Music?" he asked Hermione like she was a small childen who lived under a rock all her life. Magical Music was all about finding the music in things though the series of complicated charms. Objects from nature, like flowers or water, had a tendency to produce prettier music. Man made objects usually sounded like dying animals. It was becoming really a popular art in the Wizarding World. Hermione had a little talent for it, but it was just a hobby.

Finally he pointed to a group of three, two women and a man. "And zen zere is Yoko Takashima, age 22. She is a famous fashion designer. She created the wizarding robes that never wear out. Zey are very popular with Quidditch teams around zee world." Michael told her. Hermione looked over to Viktor for conformation on this newfound information, but he only shrugged. He was a Seeker whose only goal was to catch the Snitch. He would care less who designed his uniform. "Zee other woman is Irina…"

"Age 31. She is very famous for her abilities in Divination." Hermione interrupted him. She was really getting tired of him assuming she didn't know who everyone was. "But why is she here? From what I've read she is also famous for making breakthroughs in the lesbian community." Hermione asked a bit confused.

"Apparently that didn't matter. It did not matter that I was on a the verge of perhaps curing werewolves, so here I am." A new voice said. A man just a little taller than Hermione popped out of nowhere and stood to her other side. Hermione's breath caught in her thought with excitement.

"You're Yukifuma Shizuma. I've read all about you and your advancements in potions. You were the one who created the potion for curing the affects of Memory Charms." She said excitedly. It had been a huge achievement in the medical world.

Yukifuma chuckled a little, "Yes that was me. It's a pleasure to meet you Miss. Granger. I have read about you also. You are a credit to all those who fought He-Who-Must-Not-Be- Named." He said giving her a little bow. This made Hermione's cheeks flame a little. Michael and Viktor noticed this and both scowled a little.

It seemed to like all the men were gathering around her because before long Edward and Jason joined the group. Nobody said much, after all what was there to say? They all just stood there lost in their own thoughts. Hermione looked around the room and noticed something. "Um... where is the wizard from Mexico?" she asked out of the blue.

"He's the man with Yoko and Irina. Marco Ruiz. His fame is from being…well actually nobody really knows what he's famous for." Jason said. All the other guys nodded.

"Hello! Everyone! Could all the selected please sit in those chairs over there so we could get started?" a Ministry official said. Hermione swallowed and her whole body gave a shiver. She felt a big warm hand on her shoulder and she looked up to see Viktor behind her. It was very comforting to know he was there beside her. Together they followed the others to see how their partners would be chosen.

And that's were I end for now! Aren't I evil? I will have the next chapter up soon. I've been getting a lot of e-mails alerting me that people have this little old story on their story alerts. Although I would still like a few more reviews. I love to hear the reader's opinions and views on the story. Believe it or not I actually read them and take them seriously. ^^ Until next time everyone!


	5. Matches

A/N: I hope you guy don't mind that I'm updating so quickly. I have up to chapter 8 already written up and I write about a chapter a week. I like to keep the story moving. Okay on with the story.

Disclaimer: Me no own J.K's charrys. Me only own my OC's.

Matches

Everyone sat down their respected seats; Hermione was between Michael and Viktor. None of the Selected seemed very happy to be there, the whole mood felt grim. The room was round and the ones awaiting their fate were on one half on the room as the various Ministry officials sat around the other half. The officials looked overjoyed at was taking black. Everyone sat around plain smooth glass bowl that sat on a wooden platform. Hermione's had a sinking feeling that the bowl was going to greatly affect her future.

The room was dead silent until a small plump man came to stand next to the platform. With his long beard, small beady eyes, and gruff looking features he reminded Hermione of a Muggle garden gnome. He cleared his throat and looked around at everybody. "There is no real need for ceremony since you all know why you are here. You dozen have been chosen not simply because you're the best our world has to offer, but because you symbolize something greater." He paused to make sure they were paying attention. "You are the difference between the old ideas and the new. The old ideas are purebloods are in higher status simply because they come from old families. The new ideas are that no matter where your blood comes from you can still achieve great things." He said starting to walk around the room. "We need you to start breaking the barrier between the two groups who hold on to these ideas. If people see that it is a good thing to start mixing blood than they will follow suit. Our kind needs that now more than anything. For the sake of the next generation we need the people forget about these ideas and except each other for who we are." The little man said. Silence followed his little speech as everyone thought about his words

"So you are forcing us to get married?" A voice asked breaking the silence. "And if that was not enough you want us to start popping out babies as well?" Yoko was now standing so all could see her. The others remained silent, but it was easy to tell from their shifting bodies and somewhat hostel glares that they agreed with the designer. "It is not so bad for us older ones. We are in places in our lives settling down would not be such a bad idea. But what about the younger ones? Why take away their futures like this?" she asked him.

"We are not forcing you. You have a choice." The fat man said.

"Yeah. By choice you mean we either play the game your way. Or we are expelled from the only world we know." It was Jason's turn to say something. "That doesn't sound like much a choice to me. Sounds more like a threat."

"We are just want to show you how important this is to our world!" The official resorted starting to turn red in the face. Again the room was silent until he cleared his throat one more time. "But like you said there some conditions that go along with this. You must be married within the next three months. After the ceremony you have exactly fourteen days to consummate the marriage. Then you have a year to produce your first child."

Hermione was playing with her hands when he talked about consummating the marriage. She was a virgin. She and Ron had tried to be more than just friends, but it became very awkward when they tried to kiss. They cleanly broke off what little relationship they had and became best friends. Ron had started to write more and more letters to Lavender Brown where as Hermione sort of faded away from the world of romance. Now she was going to have to have sex with a man she hardly knew. And not just once! As many times as it took to produce a child. She was wringing her hands until they started to turn white. Than a familiar hand took hers. Viktor could tell that Hermione was very nervous and uncomfortable, so he made a subtle move to comfort her.

"Now this bowl, the Matches Bowl, has been created to decided what the matches will be. The best matchmaking witches and wizards in the world have charmed it. For those of you who know about the Goblet of Fire you will understand this bowl's workings. It is simple. We've put your names in it, the charms figure out who is the most compatible with one another, and out pops the matches."

"Great. A bowl is deciding the rest of our lives." A whisper from back said.

"Now as soon as these matches come out of the bowl they are final. This is your only chance to walk away. If you stand and leave this room you are choosing the live in the Muggle world." Nobody stood. "As soon as you walk about of this room your three months time starts. Is that understood?" He glared sharply at the group who all nodded in understanding.

"Alright than lets begin." He went to the Matches Bowl. He muttered a little spell and suddenly bright streams of light flooded out of it. Another muttered spell and out popped a piece of paper.

"The first match is…Michael St. Paul and Irina Verski." Poor Michael looked as if he was about to die. Irina simply looked disgusted. The playboy and the lesbian, now that was an interesting pair.

The second match is… ah Edward Nole and Yoko Takashima." Both looked alright with this information. They gave each other a sideways glance than looked straight forward again.

"The third match is…Marco Ruiz and Maria St. Paul." Again both looked alright. It was the others who were starting to nervous. As the list became shorter the more fidgeting seem to be happening. Hermione's stomach was tying itself in knots. She tried not to get her hopes up, but as the list was cut down she wondered if there was a chance she would be chosen to pair up with the only man that she felt at ease with.

"The fourth match is… Yukifuma Shizuma and Sara Black." The two absolutely refused to look each other. Only four more names left. Viktor could not decide if he wanted to be paired up with Hermione. He still liked her, just as he had when he asked her to the Yule Ball over two years ago. But she deserved to be with someone better. He was nowhere near good enough for her.

"The fifth match is Jason Smith and…Isabella Montoya." The new couple smiled at each other. The two would get alone just fine together.

"And finally Viktor Krum and Hermione Granger are out last couple. That is all for now. In four months you will receive an owl telling you when your first Ministry appointment is. Thank you for what you have chosen to do." And he and the other officials left.

"Zere is no way zat I'm marrying a lesbian!" Michael shouted standing up. "Zhat shouldn't be allowed!" Irina just rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"You thin I vant this any more than you do?" She shot back. Michael's tantrum seemed to open the floodgates of noise. All the couples seemed to have something to say, good and bad.

Viktor leaned over and whispered into his bride to be's ear. "I think ve should leave. It is too loud in here to have a conversation." He told her. The young witch nodded in agreement and stood up. Without anyone noticing they walked out of the room into the quiet hallway.

"Well, I can't say I'm not pleased with this match. I was actually really hoping we'd be paired together Viktor." Hermione said blushing a little. She wanted to start out this relationship as honestly as possible. "Although…I would have rather ended up together in much different circumstances.

The Seeker took her hand in his and raised her chin to look her in the eyes. "Hermione…I can not promise you ve vill be happy all the time. There vill be times vhen ve fight. But that is life. Ve vill find a way to make up. I vill do anything in my power to make you happy. If you vant more school learning, I vill make it happen. If you vant to see the vorld than I vill go vith you. Your vish is my command." He gave her a gentle squeeze of the hand. "All I ask in return is honesty and trust." His voice was deep and soft, so she would be the only person in the world to hear those words. His eyes looked straight into her's, so that she would be the only one to see the sincerity and slight pleading in his heart.

Hermione's own eyes had tears in them. He wasn't asking for her heart. He knew that was something he could not ask for, only earn. He was offering her the world and all he was asking in return was the only things she really had to offer. She nodded her head and whipped at her eyes. "I promise to give you what you ask. Thank you…" was all she could manage to say.

Viktor linked his arm with her and lead her down the hall. "Now…I guess the next step is to meet the family." Hermione swallowed suddenly dreading the reactions her adopted family would have after finding out whom her future was. She was worried mostly about how her brother's would react. Viktor must have noticed her look of sheer terror because he stopped walking.

"You don't have to vorry. My parents and family vill love you." He tried to reassure her.

"I'm not worried about your family so much as I'm worried about mine," She told him trying to smile. Once again they walked down the hall and wondered what life had in store for them once they walked out the doors.

A/N: Alright everyone…that's it for now. The next chapter you get to meet Viktor's family. As always any input you have is welcome. Until next time!


	6. Parents

A/N: You guys really make me feel special. I love the reviews! Oh, someone asked me if the ratings of this story are going to change. The answer is: Most likely not. I like the T rating. However, as I said in the first chapter, I do have a more…adult…version of the story on AFF, but that's for 18+. I think that's everything. Without further ado here's the next the chapter.

Disclaimer: Do I really have to repeat what I've already said? Alright…J.K owns the orignal characters. I own my own little OC's.

Parents

Hermione and Viktor walked side by side down the hall until they reached where several anxious looking people were waiting. She immediately spotted her adopted parents and linked arms with Viktor so they could be the first ones to hear the news. The Weasley's both stood up when they saw the young witch heading toward them. Ever since the announcement had been made the Weasley parents had been Hermione's strongest support. Molly kept Hermione busy with cooking lessons, chores, shopping trips so that she would not have time to let her mind linger on her undetermined fate. Arthur kept her busy with question about Muggle items and little projects. Although they never voice their thoughts to the Gryffindor princess she knew they were both troubled with new turn of events. When she first spotted them she could tell at first glance that they were very worried, and judging by Molly's bloodshot eyes it was evident that she had been crying.

Hermione put on a brave face before delivering the news. "Mr…and…Mrs…Mum, Dad I want you both to meet Viktor Krum. He is to be my husband. Viktor this is Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. They're my adopted parents." She said with true and pure affection. Viktor could tell that these two meant a lot to his girl, therefore they meant a lot to him. Plus he knew that getting their approval would be important for the future. First impressions were important, so the thought of every bit of advice his parents had given him and introduced himself.

"It is an honor to meet you two. I am very lucky to have been chosen for her husband." He said seriously offering the older man his had first. Arthur took it firmly and looked Viktor straight in the eye as if he was searching for something. Hermione was his daughter and he would not hand her over to a man who did not have a good look in his eye. The older man must have liked what he saw because the corners of his mouth turned upwards ever so slightly. Viktor kissed the Molly's hand and you could tell the gesture would have been very charming if the situation had been different, less heavy and forced.

"Well Mr. Krum…" Arthur started saying.

"Viktor. Mr. Krum is my father." Viktor interrupted.

"Right, Viktor. I hope you realize that Hermione means a great deal to our family. My impression of you is that you are good man, but let me be the first to warn you that Hermione has seven very protective brothers, me, a countless number of adopted uncles, and one rather strange cat. All of us will be looking out for her. None of us will accept any ill treatment of her. If you hurt her in anyway we will know about it and there isn't a single place in the world that will be able to keep you safe. Do you understand?" he asked her in protective father tone of voice

Viktor nodded unflinching expecting nothing less from the people who loved his bride to be. "I understand sir. The family of such a vonderful vitch should vant the best for her. I have the money to provide for her needs and wants. I vill do my vest to make her happy." He said the words to the Weasleys, but he glanced down at Hermione. "My parents have taught to me how to treat a voman…"

"Ve must certainly did!" a strong female voice said coming up from behind them. "Ve taught all our sons how to properly treat a voman. They know vhat vould happen to them if ve heard they vere mistreating their voman." She said. The woman was pretty in a classical kind of way. She had long dark brown hair that was only just starting to lose its shine and turn gray. She was thinner than Molly, still curvy, and a little bit taller. Her eyes were her most striking feature; they could only be described as ocean blue. Hermione was about to say something, but before she knew what was happening she was swept up in a bone-crunching hug.

"Oh you poor thing. To have been swept up in this…this… silly law!" The woman said squeezing Hermione tighter. The "poor thing" was having a very difficult time breathing as her face was being smashed into a large set of breasts. "But don't you vorry. Viktor is a very good boy. He vill take good care of you." More smashing. Hermione wasn't sure exactly how to escape since she was certain the woman nearly killing her with her chest. The Weasleys, Viktor, and a new man seemed to be in some kind state of shock. "At least I get a daughter! And soon grandchildren!" Viktor was still standing in a state of semi-shock as his mother smothered his betrothed, but the word "grandchildren" seemed to snap him out of it. Quickly he pulled her away from the chocking arms of his mother.

"Hermione this is my mother, Mira Krum." He said giving the girl a chance to catch her breath. Hermione smiled slightly bewildered and nodded to Mrs. Krum. She noticed the new man standing right behind her. He looked like a much older version of Viktor grown soft. Only he had slightly longer hair and his face was etched with lines indicating many years of laughter and scowls. He was smiling at her, but his eyes were filled with soft sympathy. "And this is my father Ognyan Krum."

"It's very nice to meet both of you. These are my adopted parents Arthur and Molly Weasley." She introduced the parents as handshakes were exchanged.

"It is very nice to meet you Mira." Molly said taking the other woman aside leaving the men and Hermione standing there confused. "I know this isn't the best of circumstances, but are you as excited as I am to have grandchildren?" she whispered.

"I know exactly vhat you mean. I have five other sons and four of them are older than Viktor. Haf any of them started settling down? No! They are all are too busy vith their jobs. Now I finally get a daughter and grandbabies!" Both women started giggling like schoolgirls, who knew they would find common ground so soon? All Hermione heard was the word "grandbabies" and suddenly she felt scared beyond all reason. She was not ready to be a mother! But the law required a child within the year. Why was everything moving so quickly?

"It seems the vomen are going to get along." Ognyan said smiling some more. "Though I think it is time that you two tell us vhat is expected from this ridiculous law." He suggested to everybody motioning to a near by couple of benches. Everyone sat down and looked to the new couple. "Vell? Viktor vat needs to happen?"

Viktor looked over at Hermione who was looking down at her lap. He took her hand in his to give it a now fimilar reassuring squeeze. "First of all ve must be married within the next three months. After that ve must have a child. There vill be appointments made to make sure ve are trying for a child." He told the parents with cheeks that were lightly colored pink as he ommited the time limit they had to consummate the marriage.

"Only three months?! How are we supposed to plan a wedding in only three months?!" Molly nearly shouted.

"There is so much to do?! Doesn't the Ministry understand how hard it is to plan a vedding that is so international?!" Mira said in the same tone of voice.

"Were is the ceremony going to be held?"

"Vhen is the date going to be set?"

"Will you be wearing a dress robe or a Muggle gown?"

"How many guest do you vant at the wedding?"

"What colors do you want the decorations to be?"

"Vhen and vhere should the reception be held?"

All the questions were fired at the new couple faster than they could even being to think about how to answer them. Hermione was overwhelmed, she had only just found out who her groom was going to be less than half an hour ago and already her mother and future mother in-law were talking about the wedding. And grandchildren! It took a minuet for the young witch to find her bearings and start talking.

"First of all I think that Viktor and I should meet the rest of each other's family before we even begin to talk about the wedding." She looked over to see if he agreed. He looked more dazed than she felt, so he simply nodded. Both mothers looked a little put out, but soon both brightened. The plans could wait for a few days. After all it was not so much that the wedding mattered to the as long as they got their grandbabies afterwards.

"Well since you aren't expected until dinner time Hermione why don't you go with Viktor and meet his family. Than you two can come over for dinner? That will give me a chance to calm the boys down." Molly suggested knowing fully well it would take time for the boys and Ginny to calm down enough to get them to listen to reason. The young people agreed with the plan and stood up. The parents shook hands and went their separate ways.

Hermione and Viktor walked a few feet behind the Krum parents still holding hands. Hermione was too lost in her thoughts to notice this, but it was the only thing that Viktor could think about. Her hand was so soft and warm, but at the same time it felt incredibly small in his. He looked over at his soon to be bride and he could almost feel her uncertainty, fear, and sadness come off of her in waves. It was easy for him to count his blessing in life. He had fame and a talent that could support in life. His whole family was still alive even after the second war. And now he was about the marry a witch many guys would have in a second. He was blessed in so many ways that she was cursed. He vowed right then and there that he would help her dreams come true.

A/N: In the next chapter you get to meet Viktor's brothers. ^^ See ya!


	7. Brothers

As always thanks for the reviews. I love it all. You all make me for so special. However there is one particular reviewer who is extra special to this story. Without her this story probably wouldn't have gone past chapter one. I was so afraid that nobody would story and than she reviewed and gave me some confidence in my abilities. So as a special thank you I would like to dedicate this chapter to mylove24.

Brothers

The Krums and future Krum walked in silence as they headed toward the nearest Floo gate, all were lost in thought. Hermione was thinking about what had just happened to her in the last few minuets. Her life had changed so quickly in the past hour that her mind was trying to keep up with it. Viktor was thinking about how his brothers might react to his bride. Ognyan was thinking about how he was going to keep his wife from killing his future daughter in-law with love. Mira, of course, was thinking about grandchildren. Lots of grandchildren.

"Alright ve vill to go Krum Manor, and you vill meet Viktor's brothers. Over lunch ve can start planning the vedding." Mira said Hermione one more bone crushing hug before following her husband home.

The young people stood in silence not making any move follow the adults. "You know. I'm wondering if we should just elope." Hermione said breaking the silence. She was half serious about that after meeting Mira Krum. Together with Molly and Ginny Hermione knew the wedding was going to be a lot bigger than she really wanted. Viktor thought about it for a moment than shook his head.

"More trouble then it is vorth. My brothers vould beat me senseless if I denied them a chance vhere they could tease me. Of course that is if they could get to me before my mother. She vould kill me." He said that with such seriousness on his face that Hermione could not help laughing.

He chuckled a little as well, but stopped as Hermione was about to Floo. "Vait!" and he pulled her back. "Before ve go I must warn you about my brothers." Viktor once again looked very serious and once again Hermione smiled.

"I am serious Hermione! You must be varned!" He took her hands in his as if to reinforce his point. Viktor felt that she should be warned as much as possible. "I have four older brothers. My oldest brother is Boyko. He is the new charms teacher at Durmstrang. He is nice and quiet, but once he gets to know you he vill probably become very protective of you. Maybe even overly protective." This didn't bother the girl one bit; all you had to do was look at the family she came from to see why. "My second brother is…vell it vill take him a vhile to varm up to you. Until he does he may seem cold. Don't take it personally. It is just his nature."

"Viktor some of my brother's are the most infamous pranksters in all of Europe. Another is the savior of the wizarding world. My two oldest were once tried to beat up Neville because he had to kiss me under the mistletoe last Christmas. I highly doubt that any way your brothers may act will shock me. You really don't worry." Hermione said trying one more tine to get though the Floo, but Viktor pulled her back.

"I'm serious about Kamen, my second brother. He goes to Phoenix University and thinks that makes better than anyone. Plus he has that…pureblood mentality." He told her. "Than there is Miroslav and Valko. They are…vhat is the term? Irish twins, born vithin eleven months of each other. They are both in their last years of Dumstrang. They are very close to one another and do not usually get close to people outside of the family. I'm not sure how they will react to you, but if they like you half as much as I do than you should get along vell." Hermione blushed at this comment and smiled. "Last there is my baby brother Radko. He is only five years old, but very sweet. He vill probably vant to talk to you a lot and ask you many questions. He is very smart and loves learning new things." He sighed looked at the Floo gate. "I think that is it. Time for lunch." The look on his made Hermione think that they were about to duel Death Eaters rather than go to a simple family lunch. He gave Hermione's hand a squeeze and together they went to Krum Manor.

It wasn't long before Hermione landed on something that went "umph" from underneath her. The young witch opened her eyes and for the second time that day looked down to see she had landed someone. Only this time it was her betrothed she had used as a pillow. "Sorry! I've never been good at Floo travel." She said getting up quickly. Viktor just smiled and stood up. They had landed in a huge living room. On the walls hung paintings of Krums past and present. The hardwood floor was covered in huge intricate rugs to protect the floor from the five chairs, couch, and coffee table. All were carved from rosewood and looked absolutely beautiful. The colors in the room were various reds, black, and other dark colors yet it felt warm and inviting. Hermione could easily see a family sitting around the coffee table after dinner talking and enjoying each other's company.

"As long as you're not hurt. Vhere is everyone…" He started to say before spotting two little feet behind one of the chairs. "I see you Radko. Come out and say hello." Viktor told the pair of feet with a little laugh in his voice. Hermione look over at said pair of feet and got a little nervous when they didn't move. She had not been around young children a lot in her life, so she did not know how to approach the youngest Krum boy. Viktor solved the problem by walking over and scooping up the child into his arms.

Radko looked like the kind of kid you just wanted to hug. He had thick dark locks, dark eyes, and dimpled smile. Hermione walked over to the brothers with a smile and held out her hand. "Hello my name's Hermione. I'm going to marrying your brother soon."

The little boy looked at her for a few moments before saying anything. "You can't marry Viktor. Your too pretty." He said jumping out of the Seekers arms and hugging her legs. "You should marry me instead." The couple was a bit shocked by these statements. Viktor had not anticipated his brother to warm up to Hermione just like that. Hermione just wasn't expecting that kind of reaction. She smiled and kneeled down on the floor, so she could be eye to eye with him.

"I have to marry your brother. The people who make laws told me to." She told him. When the boy's lip began to tremble she quickly took his hands in hers. "But I can be your big sister. Whenever you want get tired of your brothers you just come to me and we can play or read or do whatever you want." At these words the Radko's face brightened and he hugged her around the neck.

"Yay!"

"Hermione you vill make a vonderful mother to my grandchildren." Mari said with what looked like tears in her eyes. Behind here were three young men. The tallest hand a small beard and a dragon fang earring. He was taller than Viktor by a good four inches, but he had the same muscle build. He had inherited his father's dark eyes. His hair was a lighter brown, and long enough he had to tie it back to keep it out of his face. The second tallest was different. He was Viktor's twin in body build, but his hair was blond and his eyes were deep blue. The third young man was a mixture of the two. Tall, strongly built, blue eyes, brown hair. Hermione looked at them curiously. She knew they had to be Viktor's brothers, but didn't know who was who. Mari smiled and took charge of the introductions.

"Hermione these are three of my six boys." She said with obvious pride that all mothers seemed to posses. "The tallest is my oldest boy, Boyko." He smiled and walked over to her. "I'm glad that my little brother got paired with someone beautiful." He said charmingly. Another unexpected reaction that caused Hermione to blush every so slightly.

"And next to him is my fourth son, Valko."

Valko walked up to her and took her hand. Giving it a light kiss he looked up at her with a smile. "It is a pleasure to meet you. I am, as my mother said, Valko. Vhat she failed to mention is that I am the best looking of the Krum brothers." He said with a glint of mischief in his eyes. It was easy to tell the two would get alone almost as well as she did with Radko.

"And the blond is my second son Kamen." Maria introduced. Hermione held out her hand to shake his, but he just stood there with his arms folded across his chest.

All the boys looked at her in different ways. Boyko regarded her with a mixture of amusement and pity. Kamen was giving her glare that could make Snape shake in his boots. Valko just looked like the twins did when they were handed an opportunity to prank someone without being caught.

"Now that you have met most the Krum men let's all go and have some lunch." Mari turned around and headed to the dinning room. The older boys followed their mother, but new young couple stood where they were. The both opened their mouth to say something to the other, but Radko started to pull on his new sister's hand.

"Come on! This vay! You can sit next to me! " He told her leaving her no choice to follow. Viktor was just a few silent steps behind them. Though neither of them expressed their feelings out loud, but both were praying that lunch would go by quick and painless. When everyone was seated lunch began. Little did anyone at that table know that this lunch would be told in the Krum family for years to come.

A/N: Hurray I finished the next chapter! I hope you guys liked it. I would love it if you reviewed. And here's a list of the names meanings:

Ognyan- Fiery

Boyko- Battle

Valko- Wolf

Kamen- Stone

Miroslav- Peace and glory

Radko- Happy

That's it for now. See you in the next chapter.


	8. Lunch

Hey there everyone. I'm glad you all seemed to like the last chapter. (I'm sort of surprised who popular Radko was.) I love all the reviews. They give me motivation to keep on writing. Here it is! The next chapter!

Lunch

The table was quiet. Too quiet. There was no conversation what so ever and the only noise was the sound of silverware on plates. Hermione was not used to the silence at the table. She was used to at least a dozen voices having conversations, laughter, teasing, scolding, shouting and occasionally exploding. Before the meal had started she met the final brother Miroslav. He was actually the shortest of the brothers. A few inches under Viktor, but he had the same good looks. Blue eyes, brown hair, perfect body. He had offered her a friendly smile and a handshake before everyone sat down at the table for the meal. She wanted to break the silence and was going to say something about the tasty food when Kamen stood up suddenly and looked at her.

"Vhy is she here!? Vhy did they do this to us?! Making a Mudblood marry in our family?! It is insulting!" He shouted pointing at Hermione. Now there was real silence in the room. Everybody froze and stared at the outraged young man. Viktor looked like he was about the kill his own brother and judging by his parents looks they would be more than happy to join him. Valko looked embarrassed. Miroslav seemed somewhat amused. And Boyko looked curious. Radko slyly used that opportunity to hide his carrots in his napkin. "Do you know who ve are girl?! Krums. Our bloodline is as pure as you can get. There hasn't been one squib born in our family and ve alvays produce many healthy children. Your blood vill only dirty our line. You shouldn't be here!" He concluded breathing fast.

Hermione stood up and left the room. She had expected that kind of reaction from somebody. Normally she would have become angry and confronted the person who had insulted her. But the people who usually called her Mudblood were people from school who already knew her. Or Death Eaters. She could get angry at them because they knew her and they knew she was the brightest witch of her age. They knew what she did to help bring down You-Know-Who. They knew she was not useless! The only real times she was hurt was when someone called her that was when they did not know her. When they judged her by her blood not her talent.

While Hermione quietly let a few tears fall in the living room Miroslav and Boyko were trying to restrain Viktor, who was unsuccessfully trying to jump over the table and strangle Kamen. "How dare you say those things to her?! She is to be my vife! Is that how you are going to treat all your sisters in-law?" Viktor shouted at Kamen. The older brother's face was set and determined when he answered the question.

"I vill only treat them like that if they don't belong." Were the words that came out of his mouth before a loud slap echoed though the air. Ognyan had stood and it was his hand that slapped Kamen.

"I vill not have that kind of behavior in my house. Your mother and I have taught you better than that. That girl is more a victim of this ridiculous law than anyone. Have you not read what is expected of her. She cannot go to University like you and your brothers. She cannot even finish her basic schooling. She must start baring children vithin the year." Mr. Krum pushed his son back into his proper chair. "That is added the fact that she has already lost her parents and many people close to her during the var. She must give up her dreams and talent because a few men thought it vould be a good idea to force her into marriage." The whole family was watching him in a sort of shocked awe. Ognyan rarely raised his voice. When he was angry he normally expressed it much more quietly. "Now I can understand this is a sudden change for the family, but that is no excuse for you to be disrespectful to her. Should this behavior continue you vill find yourself paying for school."

Kamen paled at his father's last words. He attended Phoenix University, one of the most prestigious universities in the world and it was also one of the most expensive. Paying for it without a scholarship could cost fifty thousand galleons, a semester. He glanced at Valko, Miroslav and Boyko for support, but all three were just shaking their heads not wanting to be a part of the ugliness. Kamen looked from his father to Viktor than sat back in his seat.

"Viktor vhy don't you go talk to Hermione and than bring her back here? I do not think ve vill have anymore outbursts." His mother said quietly her eyes cutting to Kamen. Viktor nodded and found his little witch sitting on the couch in the living room. She was hugging her legs to her chest. He could tell by her shaking body that she was crying. He sat next to her without at word and just gently stroked her hair.

"He von't do that again. Nobody vill again." He said softly. "I am sorry I didn't speak up quickly enough."

She looked and forced a smile. She wiped her overly bright eyes with the back of her hand and shook her head. "It wasn't your fault. I shouldn't be crying like this. I promised myself I wouldn't…besides it's not the first time I've been called a Mudblood. It won't be the last." She said with a shaky laugh. She quickly stood and smoothed the wrinkles from her dress. "I hope I didn't ruin lunch." Hermione muttered as she started to walk.

Viktor stood in her way and firmly put his hand on her shoulders. "I am going to be your husband in three short months. It is a husband's duty to protect and defend his vife. So from this point that is vhat I vill do. You of all people deserve respect, and I vill see that you get it." He put a hand under her chin and made her look him in the eye. "I do not know vhat the future holds for us, but I vill do everything in my power to make sure you have no more reasons to cry." Than his lips landed on her's.

They had kissed a few times while they dated. But those had been quick flirty kisses. He had just been a boy who was having good time with his girl. Now he was a man trying to prove himself. With his arms warped around her waist and his soft yet firm lips on her's Hermione knew she could trust him to keep his word.

"Eeew! Mama! Papa! Viktor and Hermione are kissing." Radko yelled ruining the moment.

"I know my name mean volf, but I think out little Viktor is the real dog in the family." Valko said with a smirk.

"It's just no fair. He already has the fame and fortune. Now he get to marry a beautiful vitch. Why does he get all the luck?" Boyko asked shaking his head.

"Vell…I think ve should be happy for him. For now. After all vhen they ask us to vatch their children that vhen ve can have our revenge." Miroslav put in evilly.

The couple broke apart and looked over to see the three young men in the doorway watching the show. "As the oldest brother I must be the first of offer my apologies. My brother's behavior vas unacceptable." Boyko said with true sincerity in his voice.

"Yeah. He can be a real ass sometimes, but you just have to give him time. He grow to like you. And if he ever tries to treat you like that again ve'll kick the crap out of him." Valko took her hand and gave it a little kiss.

"The reason that ve are here and not eating is because ve vanted to make sure that you did not think all your brothers in-law thought the same vay." Miroslav pitched in. "Some of us are much more charming. Besides now you know that if you ever get bored of Viktor you can come running to one of us. Ve vill velcome you vith open arms." He gave her a wink and a Malfoy like smirk. Viktor scowled at him. Hermione laughed a little and smiled.

"Thanks you guys. That means a lot to me." She told them. It was nice to feel at least partially accepted into the family.

Radko ran back into the room nearly tackling Boyko. "Mama says that you all have to come back to the table. She says there's chocolate cake for dessert and that you can not have any if you don't finish your carrots." He said authority in his young voice.

"You mean like the carrots in your napkin." Boyko asked throwing Radko over his shoulder and heading back to the dinning room. Miroslav and Valko followed both poking fun at their baby brother.

Viktor offered Hermione his hand, "We have to finish lunch, but I have a surprise for you aftervords." He told her. She smiled a little more and let him lead her back to the table that felt a little more welcoming.

A/N: Well? Well?! What did you think?! How did you like that last tiny bit of fluff? It's just the beginning of what I have planned for these two. I always love reviews so don't feels shy about sending them. Next chappy is already in the making. See ya next time!


	9. Surprise

Hey everyone. ^^ It's onetinykiss. I just wanted to say thanks for all the reviews, it makes me feel special. Now like as always. On with the story.

Surprise

The rest of lunch went on without more outbursts. There was even a little talking. Well most of the talking was because of Mira and her endless ideas about the wedding. Sometimes a brother would put in a word or two of his own, never Kamen, and the couple would nod now and then. Boyko had offered to charm the decorations if need be and Radko seemed very interested in what kind of cake they would serve. Finally the meal was done and it was time for them to say good-bye. Mira promised to get in touch with Molly and Ginny so the girls could start planning the wedding.

Finally a clock on the chimed somewhere and Viktor stood, "It been an…eventful meal, however I must spend some time vith Hermione alone. There are things that ve need to talk about." He told them as he held his arm out for Hermione. She accepted it and gave everyone a ghost of a smile.

"Hermione ve shall have lunch on Saturday vith your mother and sister?" Mira asked with happy glittering eyes. Hermione wanted to say it was still a little early for her, but than her voice of reason reminded her that they had to get married within three months. Plus if she had a distraction from what was really happening than she figured things would go easier. The young woman smiled and nodded her agreement. After that the couple left in silence.

"Okay. I am going to take you to my surprise, so you have to blindfold yourself alright?" He asked once they stepped out the front door. She nodded and in one moment they Apparated. She kept her eyes tightly shut until she felt her feet touch solid ground.

"Umm…Hermione. You can open your eyes now." Viktor told her with a hint of laughter in his voice. He thought it was kind of cute that she a death grip on his robes. Hermione opened her eyes and looked around. They seemed to be in the countryside, but exactly she couldn't be sure. Everything around her was reaching its green summer beauty. The few trees were thick with green leaves and flowers were adding beautiful vibrant color to the scene. Her eyes landed a small cottage in between two trees. It was like something pulled out of a children's book.

Hermione looked up at Viktor slightly confused, "I don't get it. What is this place?" she asked.

He took a deep breath before answering, "Vell…vhen I heard I had to get married I figured I vould be a good idea to prepare a house for future family." He nodded to the cottage. "I inherited this place from my uncle. It's been in my family for generations. It was made by my great great great … many greats relative. Not sure which one." He explained leading her to the front door. "He vas a Quidditch player and this house is always passed to the first Quidditch play in each generation. I thought it could be our house."

Hermione was a bit doubtful that. It hardly looked big enough two people yet alone an entire family. It was a little dinky one level, one door, one window hut. He must have seen her doubt because his eyes glinted with mischief as he smiled and opened up the door. She walked in and thought she would fall down dead from shock. The front door lead her to a huge front hall that opened up to a giant stone staircase. She looked all round her and realized she was standing what could only be called a mansion.

"Where are we?" She asked him.

"This place is called, Crystal Air Manor. I vas hoping vith your help ve could call it 'Home'." He said with small blush. "It's big enough for a family or seven. I haven't even seen all the rooms in this place. My ancestor put protections spells on it to hide it from Muggles. On the outside it looks like a cottage, but on the inside it is a mansion. If you valk out the back door you end up gardens. It's connected to the Floo Netvork as vell, so ve are not isolated from our families." He took her hand and led her up the stairs. Together they walked down a couple of winding hallways. The floors were covered in ornate carpets and the walls had various works of art on them ranging from landscapes to portraits of stern looking witches and wizards.

He stopped in front of a rosewood door and like a gentlemen opened it for her with a little bow. Hermione stepped inside not sure what to expect. Once again she was left breathless at what she looking at. It was a big bright bedroom. The rosewood floor had a soft white oriental carpet with lavender patterns. A small coffee table sat next to two big glass doors allowed sunshine to stream into the room from the balcony. White sheen fabric hung over a queen sized bed with light lavender sheets and pillows. The whole room was colored with whites, lavenders, and creams. To the left of the bed was bookshelf filled with thick volumes of the written word. To the right was what she assumed was the closet. The whole room felt warm and welcoming.

"I thought you could stay here until the vedding than ve can move into the master bedroom together. My room is two halls down. It has the door with the silver Phoenix on it." He was nervous, that much was obvious by the rapidness of his speech.

Before he knew what was happening Hermione was hugging him around the neck. "Viktor it's beautiful! I love it." She said with a laugh. Standing on her tiptoes she reached up to give him a kiss on the cheek. He smiled and looked down at her. For the first time since he saw her at the Ministry her face was bright with a true smile. There was no tint of sadness at all in it. It was pure joy. "This is perfect. If we're living under the same roof than we'll have more chances to get to know one another."

She kisses him again; only this time was on the lips. He kissed her back while wrapping his arms around her waist. This kiss was like the one from lunch only more passionate. Heated. Unbreaking. After a few moments Viktor traced his tongue across her lips asking for entrance. After a brief moment of hesitation she opened up a little to let him in.

She was the most wonderful thing he had ever tasted. He could taste a little bit lunch, peppermint, and something he couldn't identify. His hand started to trace small patterns on her back as she stood on her tiptoes to deepen the kiss. The snogging went on for a while before he picked her up and laid her on the bed.

This was different from when they snogged at Hogwarts. Those little get togetheres had been always been sort of childish, hasty, and they were always a little afraid of been being caught. There were enough distraction that they couldn't enjoy it to the fullest. Two years changed a lot. They were no longer at school therefore they no longer had to worry about being caught. It was quiet at Crystal Air. The light that shined though the windows made the whole atmosphere warm and peaceful. The kisses started to get a little heated where there was a sudden pop in the room that made the couple jump.

"Master, Nifty is here." A house elf had suddenly appeared into the room completely ruining the moment.

Viktor sat up with a sigh, "Nifty is the head house elf here in Crystal Air. There are three others who keep this place clean and in order. Nifty this is Hermione Granger. She is to be my vife soon." He said to the little house elf.

"Oh! Nifty is very happy that Miss is here. If you ever need anything just call for me." Nifty said with a big smile.

"It's nice to meet you Nifty. I hope you'll be able to show me around the mansion later. It's so big I'm afraid I might get lost." Hermione said returning the smile. The house elf smiled and nodded. When he noticed that his master and new mistress did not seem to need him he popped back out of the room. The young witch stared the spot the elf had been and than over at Viktor. One look at his face and she started to giggle. It was soft at first, like a tiny little bell. It was so quiet in fact that Viktor wasn't sure he heard it at first. But soon she was collapsed on the bed holding her side.

"Laughing at me already? Oh, I can tell this marriage is going to be great." Viktor said smiling down at her. It was a few minutes before she could control herself. "Do you mind telling me vhat vas so funny?"

She wiped away a few tears before answering, "I'm sorry. It just…well you looked so crestfallen. Like somebody just stole your favorite broom or something. I was laughing because it was such a dramatic change from the expression you had just moments earlier." She leaned over and gave him a small peck on the cheek. "I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings."

Viktor smiled shaking his head, "No hurt feelings." He stood and stretched. Looking at a clock on the wall he inwardly groaned. In just a few hours he would have to face her family. He remembered disliking the red headed boy and really would have rather avoided any more confrontations with him, but it had to be done. For Hermione's happiness. "Ve have to go to dinner in a few hours and it's been a long day already. Vhy don't ve rest for a vhile before ve go?"

She nodded in agreement. The day had been trying and it wasn't about to get any easier. Not with her family involved. Alright let's just be honest: It wasn't going to be easy with Ron involved. The emotional roller ride was taking its toll. "That's a good idea. I am feeling a little tired." Viktor smiled and was about to leave when he felt her grab his sleeve. "But before you go. Could I have one tiny kiss?" she asked him blushing charmingly. "Please?"

It was his turn to laugh now. Bending down he gave her a small kiss on the lips. "I'll see you in a little vhile okay?" And then he left for real. He headed to the bathroom across his room to take a cold shower. When he was sure he was clean enough he quickly dried off went to his room. Sorting though his clothes Viktor tried to find something better to wear to the Weasley dinner. He settled on a red dress shirt and some black pants. Simple. He wanted to be accepted into the family because he knew how much it would mean to his bride if he was. "What should I do to get them to like me?" He asked himself.

Little did he know that Hermione was having the exact same thoughts a few halls away. Kamen's words just kept echoing in her mind. They made her wonder what other members of his family would think. After all it was a common idea among Purebloods that Muggleborn's were beneath them. She was truly glad she had been matched up with Viktor, but she hated facing the fact that she might have meet more of his family who agreed with Kamen. She hugged a pillow tightly and hoped that dinner would go more smoothly than lunch had.

A/N: Okay well… I can't wait for dinner. See ya then.


	10. Dinner

Hey everyone it's onetinykiss. Here is the first chapter for 09. Kind of neat if ya think about it. Anyway while I was editing the past chapters I noticed I made…not an error, but something that will have to be explained in a future chapter. So I read all the reviews I've been given and noticed that nobody else noticed this little…glitch? So I want to see if anyone else can find it. Here's a hint: It has to do with the Selected. If you think you know that the glitch its e-mail me your answer at . Please title your e-mail "A Fated Marriage Answer" or else I won't read it. There is a prize for the first one who can answer it. So I guess that's all for now. Now its time for dinner.

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story. I do have some OC's in here and I do own them.

Dinner

"Now, they will be here in a few minutes, so I'm laying down the ground rules now. First of all you will not upset her in any way. That means you will no interrogate her or tease her in any way. The poor girl has enough on her plate without all your little comments. Second, you will not insult or pull any jokes her future husband. He is a polite nice young man and I will no have him thinking we are a bunch of barbarians when he first meets everyone. He'll learn it soon enough. And third we WILL be as supportive as we can. Hermione needs us now more than ever." Molly Weasley finished fixing all the Weasley siblings and Harry with a pointed glare. With wide eyes they all nodded in understanding unwilling to do anything else.

"Good, now all of you go change into something more presentable and be quick about. Arthur, go set the table." At first there was no movement. "Now!" Then there was a flurry of hustling and bustling. Molly went to the kitchen to put the last touches on dinner. While she was working she heard someone say, "Stupid Floo." Mrs. Weasley went over to Hermione with a smile. "Hello dear." She looked around a little confused. "Umm…where is Viktor?"

"Shhh!" Hermione rushed over and put a hand over her mother's mouth. "Listen…I'm going to talk to the boys before they find out that Viktor is going to be my husband. He's waiting at the house for me to tell him it's okay to come over. I'm kind of worried about Harry and Ron's reactions." She looked around to make sure nobody was there.

Molly gently removed Hermione's hand that hid her soft smile. "You don't have to worry about the boys or Ginny. I've already talked to all of them." She said picking up a serving dish and filling it with mixed steamed vegetables. Hermione picked up the pot roast plate and followed her to the table.

"I knew I could count on you to talk to the family, but I really feel like I should talk to Harry and Ron myself." She said as she placed the plate on the table. While looking at the table a realization hit her like a wall of bricks. In a matter of a few years she would be serving her own family dinner. Hermione sighed; she was going to have to learn to cook. After all she could not make the elves do all the cooking.

Molly was about to say something when Ron, Harry, and the twins came stampeding down the stairs. Before either lady could say anything the youngest Weasley boy and the Boy Wonder grabbed Hermione on either side to drag her to the empty living room slamming the door behind them.

"Alright Mione start talking. Who is he? What do you think of him? Do you think that we ought to 'talk' to him about how he treats you?" Ron asked in one breath in a rush. Hermione looked at him in shock for a few moments and shook her head. He was still the same old Ron.

"First I'm not telling you who it is because you'll meet him in just a few minutes. Second I think he is a prefect gentleman. He cares for our future and me. He wants us to both be happy, and from what he told me he'll do whatever it takes to make that possible. Third the last time "you talked" to a guy I got too close to he broke up with me the next day saying it was better for his health. So do I want you to "talk" to him?" She asked sarcastically. "NO! You both will be nice and polite to him. You have no say in the matter. Understood?" She told the boys in a perfect imitation of Molly. Hermione looked over at the closed door and scowled. "And that mean you guys as well. He's nervous enough he doesn't need all of you treating him like he's the bad guy." She yelled.

Slowly the door opened and every single Weasley child walked in with an Extendable Ear in hand. "I like this guy. He's sweet and smart and polite. And it doesn't matter what anyone thinks because we are going to get married. It's the law. He's going to be family and I want him to like you guys. Not think you're a bunch of barbarian when he first meets you." She sighed again. "He'll find that out soon enough anyway."

"You've got to stop doing that Mione." Fred said with a small shudder.

"You're starting to sound just like Mum." George added.

Hermione smiled a little, "Good. Maybe now you will listen to me." She said with a little laugh. Every boy in the room groaned a little and Ginny laughed. "Now remember what I said about being nice."

It was than when Molly chose to enter the room. "What is going on here? There's a nice young man waiting out there to meet his bride's family and you're all holed up here? Someone should go save him from your father. He's talking about the uses of Muggle computers." She told her plethora of children. Faster than you could blink there was a rush of people headed to the dinning room.

"I thought he was going to wait until I told him it was safe." Hermione muttered to herself as she followed the family. Viktor was standing in the middle of a circle when she came into the room. Everyone, with the exception of Molly and Arthur, looked at him in a mixture of shock, awe, anger, and amusement. There was silence as the staring continued.

Arthur was the one to break the tension and awkwardness that Hermione and Viktor was starting to feel. "Well it seems that everyone is here. Now we can eat dinner right?" He said motioning to everyone sit at the table. For Hermione it was like somebody put a spell on the room to make everything go in slow motion. She and Viktor at the table and everyone followed. At first dinner went normally. The twins bragged how they had just created a new hair potion that could change your hair six different colors in an hour. Charlie and Harry were taking about the upcoming season. Ginny was talking to Hermione about a new hair charm that was supposed to tame any kind of hair. Molly was fussing over Bill and Viktor making sure that neither of their plates was empty. Arthur was tinkering with a Muggle pocket watch and Ron was shoving food into his month while glaring at his future brother in-law.

The meal went on like that from beginning to end. It was during dessert that the Weasley dinner started to get interesting. "So you and Hermione are going to get married?" Charlie said opening up the subject everyone was dying to talk about.

Viktor swallowed his piece of pie and nodded. "Yes. I vas chosen to be her husband." He said quietly. "I understand that most of you are against this marriage. There are some very tight rules that will prevent her from joining you at Hogvarts, but I don't vant that to prevent her from fulfilling her dreams. I've told her this already. If it is my power I vill give her vhatever she desires."

"That's all well and good to say, but relationships aren't just material things. You need respect, trust, compassion, understanding, and so much more." It was Bill's turn to speak up. The family knew he was talking more about his brief fling at Fleur. The young Frenchwoman had expected him to treat her like a princess. Complete with numerous shopping trips, expensive meals, and other luxuries he could not afford. The two did not last very long.

Viktor nodded in understanding, "I agree whole heartedly, and I believe that ve are on our vay to having a good and stable relationship. Ve are not…in love yet, however whoever expected that is crazy for thinking that…"

"Ha! So you don't love her!" Ron interrupted slamming down his fork on his plate.

"Of course I don't." Viktor said glaring at Ron. "I have really only known her for a short vhile. I do like her very much and consider myself lucky to be paired with such a witch. However love takes time. It would be unreasonable to think that after almost two years apart that ve vould automatically fall in love with simply because ve are being forced to marry."

Hermione was unsure if she should be hurt by his words or relieved by his honesty. She wanted to say something, but kept silent. She knew that it was not in her place to pipe in. Yet. Right now this was a conversation for the men to size each other up.

"But what if you fall in love with someone else? What will you do than? Cheat on her? Hermione deserves better than that." Ron was not about to give up so easily.

"I agree she deserves better. Vhich is vhy if, and I say if, I fall in love vith someone else Hermione will be one of the first to know. Vhat will happen after that who knows? Ve vill cross that bridge should it come to pass." He tried to explain.

"How do we know you will help her in her schooling? It won't be easy once you have children." Harry was next in line for the questioning. "She is the most talented witch of our age. That talent shouldn't go to waste."

The world famous Seeker could not remember the last time he felt so much pressure. Compared to this the World Cup had been a breeze. "I do not know the answer to that question yet. There are a lot of people we need to talk to. A lot of loopholes that need to be found. A lot of plans that need to be set." He said before draining an entire cup of water. The glass felt cool in his now sweaty palms and the cold water calmed his buzzing nerves.

Hermione saw an opening for her speak up. "Listen I know…I know this wasn't what we all had planned." She said drawing everyone's attention. She looked at Harry and Ron, "We were supposed to start our sixth year together. It was going to be the best year every. No Dark Lords. No wars. Just studying and having a little fun." She swallowed. "But that's just now going to happen. Fate has something in mind for me."

"But that's not fair." Ron argued looking both pained and frustrated.

"When has life ever been fair for me Ron?!" She shouted. The few words were filled with bitterness, anger, hurt, and truth. "At school I was bullied for being smart or Muggleborn. I was hated simply because my parents weren't magical. And than they were killed. I have nothing left of them. But I still had to help with the war effort. I wasn't given a chance to morn them. I was fighting Death Eaters." Angry tears were flowing down her face. "That is true unfairness."

She took a swipe at her eyes and continued, "This is nothing. I get to keep my family and join a new one."

"But Mione…"

"No buts. Viktor and I are trying to make the best of this. And you are not making this any easier by treating him like a prisoner of Azkaban. When life gives you lemons make lemonade."

"What does lemons have to do with anything?!"

"Nothing. It's a Muggle expression meaning…Nevermind what it means." She did not feel like explaining the saying at the moment. "Why are you all being so hard on him anyway?"

"Why my dear Hermione you should know that by now." Fred said leaning back in his chair with a smirk.

George copied his twin, "We are your brothers. Making sure your man will treat you right is our job."

Bill raised his glass in a mock toast, "To the everlasting protectiveness of brothers."

"We just want to make sure our little sister is safe and well cared for." Charlie said softly.

Harry gave her a soft smile telling her with his eyes that he agreed. She sighed looked over to Viktor. He to had a look in his eye that told her he understood. Finally she dared to look at Ron. His face was red, his fist was balled tight, and his eyes were filled with an emotion she could not exactly pinpoint. Added at together she guessed that he was angry. Though why she wasn't sure.

"Ron?" She asked hesitantly.

"He doesn't deserve you. He's no good enough." He said before pushing back his chair and storming to his room.

"What was that about?" Arthur asked looking at where his son had sat.

"Beat me dad." George replied.

"He's just being stubborn. He's being Ron." Ginny shrugged it off. "So Hermione tell me what plans you have for the wedding." And thus the rest of the night went. Everyone had relaxed some. The boys knew there would more chances to quiz Viktor. Molly was grateful that there had been not real fighting. Viktor felt accepted into the family. Making the dinner, in his eyes, a success. And Arthur had figured out how to work the pocket watch. Only Harry and Hermione were unsettled by Ron's outburst. They both knew him well enough to know that something was bothering him. Still the rest of the night went by quickly and smoothly. There was a little concern about Hermione going home with Viktor, but all soon agreed it was for the best.

While Harry and Hermione gave each other a good-bye he whispered in her ear, "We can talk to him letter." She smiled and nodded. A few more hugs and the couple headed home. Both were exhausted, but knew that there was much to be discussed before they could call it a day.

A/N: Done…wow. I doubt you guys can tell, but my chapters have getting longer. Cool. All impute is welcome. And I'll see ya soon in the next chapter.


	11. Morning

Hey there everyone! I'm back with a brand new chapter. I hope you like it. For a while I had major writers block that took forever to get past. Oh well. I guess that's just how it goes sometimes. Anywhere here's the next chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story. I do have some OC's in here and I do own them.

Morning

All was quiet in the living room. Hermione sat in a big red leather chair while Viktor was sprawled out on a black couch. Neither was saying a word. The only sound was the clock on the wall ticking away each second of quiet. Hermione had one of the books for her room in hand, but she was staring at the wall rather than reading it. Viktor was throwing a glass Snitch up in the air and catching it, yet the glazed look in his eyes made it clear he wasn't really thinking about it.

"So…" She said quietly not sure what to say after that.

"Yeah..." Was his reply.

"I…think today went well considering all that happened."

"Yeah…"

"Perhaps…should we talk about everything…"

Viktor sighed, "I honestly don't feel like it. Maybe ve could vait until tomorrow?"

"Sure." She said in a voice laced with fatigue. Hermione let out a little yawn and set down her book. "I… I think I'll go to bed now." She stood up to stretched out a little. Walking over to him the young woman gave her husband to be a good night kiss on the top of his head. Viktor took her hand so he could place a soft kiss on it.

"Good night."

She walked down to her room and changed into a silk nightgown that she had found in her closet earlier. It was spelled to fit her perfectly one she slipped it over her head. Hermione went to her window and looked up the night sky. The stars were gleaming clear and bright like little diamonds waiting for someone to string them on a necklace or set them in a ring. She searched the sky for a while, and soon found the one she was looking for. The everlasting North Star that stayed suspended right where she had always found it in the past. It was waiting for her. For her wish. She clapped her hands three times, spun in a circle, than blew the star a kiss like her grandmother had taught her. "Please…please let this become a real loving marriage in the end." She whispered. Hermione waited for some kind of sign to be sent to her, but none came. She shook her head and tucked herself into bed.

Sleep came quick to whisk her off to dreamland. She had been asleep for a good half hour when her door creaked open. Viktor had been outside the door the whole time waiting for her to fall asleep. When he was sure it was safe he walked quietly over to her bed, so he could get a good look at her. It was not meant to creepy, he just wanted a chance to look at her without all the noise. Without having to see that look in her eyes that begged him for answers he could not give her. He just wanted to look at his bride when she was the most relaxed and happy.

With a Firewhiskey in one hand he gazed down at her in wonder. Her small figure glowed with silver moonlight giving her a very delicate look. She was so thin he found it hard to imagine that within a year she would be round with his child. She was so fragile looking that he was starting to wonder if she would even make though the honeymoon in one piece. Still that was not what really amazed him the most. It was the expression on her face that made him smile.

She was relaxed completely. Signs of worry, forced happiness, sadness was nowhere to be found. He even saw the hint of a smile on the edges of her mouth. He reached down and brushed a small curl that had fallen over her face. The small brush of skin against skin was brief, but he enjoyed it. Her skin was soft and smooth as silk. He smiled and walked out of the room without a sound.

Viktor went to his own room. He finished the whiskey, changed into some flannel pants, and went to bed. He laid there. And laid there. And laid there; but sleep eluded him. Thoughts of Hermione kept running though his mind. He sighed sitting up. He needed to write a few things down just to get them out of his head so he could go to sleep. Getting out of bed the sleepy Seeker headed to his study. It took a while for him to write everything down. Letters were written, notes were taken, doodles were drawn, and coffee was downed. By the time he was done with everything it was nearly five in the morning.

He looked at all the papers splayed all over his desk. He was so sleepy that he was starting to see double of everything; it was giving him a headache. Viktor stood and went back to bed where he crashed without a thought in his head.

Hermione was not a morning person. She woke up with a groan as the new sunrays blinded her half open eyes. She stumbled out of bed and walked down the hallway trying to find the nearest bathroom. After making a few random turns and trying more doors than she could keep track of she finally found a bathroom.

It was big with white marble tiles. The sink looked like a small fountain of ever flowing water; next to it lay small multi colored cakes of soap. In the far off corner, taking up a good amount of the large bathroom, there was a small swimming pool, which she assumed was the bathtub. Opposite the tub was a small towel closet with a mirror next to it. Scattered on the floor were various plus cream colored rugs to keep one's feet war. Everything was so elegant even the toilet looked fancy. Immediately she disrobed and promptly stepped into the tub. The moment her foot touched it's bottom water came from nowhere. It was adjusted to her exact liking. Cool enough it wasn't burning her skin off, but warm enough for her to take a relaxing morning soak.

Viktor was dead to the world when Nifty popped into the room. "Master!" He said trying to wake the young man. When he got no response he tried again, "Master?!" he shouted the next time. Still no response. Nifty popped out of the room than popped back in armed with pots and pans. Banging them together loudly he shouted again, "Master?! Are you awake? Do you want breakfast?"

Viktor bolted up and sighed, "I'm up Nifty." He grunted as he flopped out of bed falling hard on the floor. "Ow…" There on the floor he stared up at the ceiling for a few long moments. Nifty made sure that his master was awake. Confirming that he was really awake the house elf popped out of the room and back to his chores. Lifting himself off the floor Viktor grabbed his clothes for the day. He checked his clock wanting the smash something after noticing the time. It was eight o'clock in the morning; that meant he had only three hours of sleep under his belt and a list of a million things he needed to get down before the sunset that day. That was a very bad combination. He headed for his bathroom and changed his mine. His bathroom only had a toilet, sink and shower. Right now he needed to soak and let his frustration ease away. He knew somewhere there was a huge tub. Prowling though the halls he went looking for the desired room.

As much as she would have like to stay warm in the gentle tub waters Hermione knew it was almost time to get out and ready for the day. Lavender bubbles filled there tub and floated in the air. Earlier she had washed her hair with strawberry shampoo and conditioner. Everything was so sweet smelling and warm that she almost wished that she could stay there forever. She lifted her hands to inspect them. Her fingers looked like raisins, oh yeah. Time to get out of the water.

She stepped out of the little pool and looked around for a towel. The only one she was saw was the hand towel next to the sink. She walked over to the closet, but found one other towel. She carefully unfolded it and suddenly felt just a little worried. It looked barely big enough to cover her modestly. Hermione knew this was the kind of thing you normally called your house elf for, but she just could not bring her self to do that. It was kind of embarrassing. Tightly she wrapped the towel around her form and stepped in front of mirror to see what the cloth covered. It wasn't much. She had to hold it at the top and bottom just to keep it closed. It hid most of her breasts and went just past her but. As long as she didn't run into Viktor everything would be just fine.

Hermione quickly went to the door. Reluctantly she let go of the bottom to open the door and walk into the hall. She was now wide-awake and suddenly aware that she had no idea who to get to her room. Taking in a deep breath she started heading down the hall hoping she was going in the right direction. She would take a turn, look left and right, open the door, close the door, and got back walking.

Little did she know that Viktor was doing the exact same thing, minus the looking left and right. With every failed door he grew angrier. Soon he was slamming the doors hard enough that the paints on the adjacent walls would sometimes fall down. How hard could it be to find a bathroom?!

Minutes passed and the made their way closer and closer to one another. By now Hermione to was getting angry enough to slam the doors though not hard enough to knock hard paintings off the walls. She took a left at the next turn while Viktor a right at the very same corner. Since he was so much bigger than her it was easy to understand why she ended up on the floor.

"Hermione! Vhat are you doing?" Viktor asked quickly forgetting his anger and offering her a hand.

Hermione rubbed the arm she had landed, "I was looking for my room." She said with a small smile. "This house is like a maze. I think I'm going to put a mapping spell on this place so I can stop getting lost."

He returned the smile, "Yes that would be good." God she looked beautiful in the morning, even if her hair was wet. His eyes followed a single water droplet as it fell down from the tip of her nose and fell down to her chest. Slowly it slid down to her breast and to the tip of her nipp…

It was at that moment both realized that the tiny towel Hermione had used to hide herself in was lying uselessly on the ground. Time froze as they stared at the towel. Rather than pick it back up Hermione let out a little "eep" and used her hands to cover her chest and lower region.

Viktor made no move to turn around or hide his eyes, he was much too captivated by the vision in front of him. Her sink was a flawless cream color. Her legs were long, her curves were perfect, and her blush was charming. He had sudden fantasies about the honeymoon.

"Umm…Viktor. Would you mind turning around?" Hermione asked when she started to see an odd look in his. She could not what it was. His eyes seemed to sort of glaze over as well as have a sudden spark in them. "Viktor!"

That snapped him out of his daze. He quickly bent down and picked up the towel handing it to her then turning around. "Sorry. Umm, but vhy exactly are you wandering around in the halls in a towel that is clearly too small?" He asked her.

Hermione attempted to wrap around the towel around her-self again, but gave up. He had seen everything already, so she held it up in front of her. "Well you see…I was only half awake when I found a bathroom, but well there weren't any other towels other than this one. So I half naked I started wandering hoping to find my room." She said softly.

"To get to your room you must go down this hall take a left, than take a right, and it will be the fourth room on the right." He said resisting the urge turn around to make hot passionate love to her. Could you blame him? After all he was a healthy young male in his prime and she was an attractive young female.

"Umm thanks…" She looked around him taking note that she would have to go around him get to her room. Viktor stepped to the side and faced the wall.

"You better got dry off and get changed. Ve have a long day ahead of us." He told her.

She nodded and ran down the hall getting to her without any further incidents. Viktor waited until he could no longer hear her footsteps to turn around. He looked down at his pajama pants; he was going to need a cold shower after all.

A/N: Well? What did you think? Hehehe! I had a lot of fun with this chapter (even though it took a while to get past some writer's block.). Well review if you feel like it. I can't wait to see you in the next chapter. Until than!


	12. List

A/N: I know I haven't updated in a while and for all of you kind and loyal readers I do apologized. I must tell you all I am a full time student and have two part time jobs. It is very difficult for me to find time to write anymore. And…shortly after I posted chapter 10 I received a very very nasty e-mail. It was very hurtful and insulting and it really…made me want to totally forget about this fic. But then I re-read all the nice reviews I have received in the past from all of you wonderful people and have chosen to continue writing Fated. So well here's the next chapter.

List

Breakfast was pleasant. Both chose to ignore the towel incident and go on with the day like it never happened. The house elves had made some nice French toast, bacon, sliced fresh fruit, a hard-boiled egg. Honestly it was all too much for her. She didn't each much in the morning normally, so she just munched on some fruit and a small slice of bacon.

"Last night I made of list I things ve need to get done today." He said giving her the piece of paper. She read it over to see what they had to do. Most of it was rather obvious. Things like putting her name on his bank account, touring the nearby town, lunch, say hello to both families (for the mother's sakes), meet up with Dorian for dinner. Wait…who was Dorian?

"Umm Viktor? Who is Dorian and why are we having dinner with him?" She asked trying not to sound nervous. If you looked at her recent meal track record you could understand why she was hesitant about having a meal with another person.

"He is my manger. He is going to tell us vhat is in store for use in the next few days." He said causally though she noticed he wasn't making eye contact with her. "He also vants to talk to you about…vhat you will be expected to do as my vife." He half mumbled suddenly finding the slice of apple in his hand very interesting.

"What I'm expected to do as your wife?" She repeated not sure if she heard him correctly. What was that supposed to mean?

"Hermione…I am a international star. And…vell…I have fame and fortune and some freedoms most could only dream of. But I also have responsibilities to be the best Seeker I can be. I have to put on an image for the public." Viktor was pretty sure he wasn't explaining this right because at the moment Hermione was giving him a look that could kill.

"What has that to do with me?" She asked her voice a litter tighter than normal. She was the best friend of Harry Potter, so she was pretty sure she knew what he was trying to say. Whenever she was out with him and Ron she always had to look intelligent and organized or else she was harshly citied by…well everyone outside of the family and few close friends. It could very restricting being famous or related to someone who was famous.

"You know vhat is it like being famous. As my vife you vill be expected to show up to most of my games. Go to parties, do interviews, come to charity events…" He did not want to continue with this conversation, but by the look she was giving him he knew he had to. "You might be expected to change your appearance vhen ve are out in public." He softly was now looking at his plate. "Dorian vill tell us vhat has to be done."

"What is wrong with the way I look and why does this guy get any say on how I dress?" She asked raising her voice.

"Nothing is vrong vith the vay you look! If it vere up to me I vould never change a hair on your head…" He started to say but was quickly cut off.

"There's something wrong with my hair?" She asked grabbing a lock and looking at it. Her hair was always a sensitive subject for her. Over the years with a few tricks and charms her hair had become rather beautiful if she remembered to brush it out while it was still wet.

"Nothing is vrong vith your hair. Or any part of you." He reassured her quickly. It was times like this he was thankful his mother gave him brothers and no sisters. Girls were complicated and if you didn't say the right thing you died. "I'm just saying…Okay remember vhen ve vent out together? Vell it vill be like that…only worse. Because ve vill be together in public a lot!" He took a deep breath and thought carefully about what he was about to say. If he did not word it just right than he would not live to see a wedding. "I don't vant to see you get hurt…fans…fans have hurt some ex-girlfriends of mine. Sending them dangerous curses…Dorian and I have discovered that if my girlfriends…look a certain vay than they are less likely to receive those kinds of curses. Dorian is just helping US take precautions."

Hermione stay quiet for a long while before she said slowly, "So…If this Dorian says I should change my appearance in public…it is for my own safety?"

"Yes."

"Well…okay. I guess that's alright for now." She sighed. Viktor nodded, but waited her to say more. "But just know that I am not a trophy wife. I don't want my life to revolve around going to your games and smiling for the camera. I want to be a healer and I will do anything I can do achieve that dream."

Viktor let out a breath he had been holding, "I understand that Hermione and believe me vhen I say I vould never stand in your vay. I vant to help." He took another piece of paper out of his pocket. "This is a letter that I'm sending to a friend of mine. He is a healer. I vant to ask him if he vill take you on as his apprentice."

Hermione looked at him confused, "An apprentice? But don't I have to finish school and past tests before I can do that?"

"Technically speaking, yes. But we are not under normal circumstances. I read all the details of the law last night." He told her rubbing his slightly throbbing eyes. "Right now you are considered an adult, and you can legally use magic." Viktor stood and stretched out. "So all you have to do is past the Medical Apprentice Test, the M.A.T. If you get a high enough score you will have passed have normal general studies tests and vill be accepted if not by my friend than by someone as a medical apprentice."

"Okay." She said with the wheels in her head already turning. "I'm going to need books so I can study. And I need to know when I'll have time to study, the date of the test, what scores I need to pass, what subject I should focus on… "

Viktor chuckled a little and offered her his hand in order to stop her listing, "Vith a list like that ve had better start this day now."

The first part of the day went by quickly. They went to the Bulgarian branch of Gringotts first. There she almost had a heart attack when she saw the amount he had saved in his vault. He just smiled when he saw her hand shaking slightly as she signed the required forms. "Vhat did you expect? I come from a vealthy family and I am one of the best Seekers in the Vorld."

She rolled her eyes and smiled a little at his male ego. Every guy had to have at least a little one she guessed. Next they went to get her M.A.T information, which was followed immediately by a trip to the local bookstore. After they made sure the small mountain of study material was sent to Crystal Air Viktor gave Hermione the grand tour of the village. Cute would be the right word for it. It was small and traditional, but at the same time it had a modern touch to it. Once in a while they had to stop to so he could sign an autograph.

Much to her surprise there was no press to bug them. Hermione had been certain that press and paparazzi would have swarmed them after the announcement of their engagement. Earlier in the book, when she bought a mountain of study material, she saw a newspaper spreading the news to the world. When she questioned Viktor about this he took out a pocket watch, "This is charmed so that anyone with the intent to block anyone who wants to ask questions for the press. The only way to get past the charm is to go through Dorian.

Lunch was light and pleasant, but shortly after they went back to the Manor. There Viktor took a much-needed nap and Hermione started to study. The day of the test was in just two months. Time passed quickly and quietly for the two young people, but finally both had to start preparing for dinner.

Hermione went to her room to find a black floor length dress lying on her bed. Knowing it was probably set there for a reason she slipped it on. It was made of a sleek material and its only decoration was a small triangle, made of what seemed to be diamonds, which held the single strap together with the dress. Rather than bothering with her hair too much she simply combed it until it was sleek and shiny before pinning it back with a few burettes. Strappy heals and a matching purse where her only accessories, but they completed the outfit. She was pure elegance looking in the mirror.

Hermione was checking herself over when there was a knock on her door. She opened it up to see Viktor standing there in a Muggle tuxedo. The black outfit and his rough charm made him look more like a jewel thief than a professional athlete. "I vanted to make sure you vould not get lost this time." He told her with a half smile. The Seeker looked her up and down admiring the woman he would soon spend his life with. She was perfect, and hopefully his agent would think so as well.

"Why thank you for escorting me." She said giving him a small mock curtsy. In the back of her mind she was also thankful that she was fully clothed this time.

"You look beautiful Hermione, but there is one thing missing." He took out a small black box from his pocket. Nested inside the box was a small sliver ring with three diamonds adorning it. The two side stones were smaller Solitaire cut, but the middle one was bit larger and cut in the shape of a star.

"Past, present, and future." Viktor said softly and he slipped the ring on her finger. "That is vhat they represent. The middle one is supposed to be the North Star. No matter vhere you go it alvays hangs in the sky to help you get home. The ring vill remind you that no matter how lost you become or how alone you may feel you can alvays come home to me."

She looked at the ring for a long time allowing the full impact to hit her. It was official now, they were going to be married. The young woman looked up at the man in front of her with a smile. "It feels real now. Don't you think?" He simply nodded and offered her his arm. One moment they were walking down the hall and the next there were in front of a restaurant called "The Garden".

"This is it. Just remember vhatever Dorian does is for the best. I have known this man for years and trust his judgment." He reminded her. Hermione nodded and together arm in arm they walked inside.

The host looked up from his list to give them a smile. "Welcome to The Garden. How may I be of service?" He asked.

"We are here with the Collins party." Viktor said with authority.

"Your other party member is already here. Please follow me."

They walked over to a table where a man was waiting for them. He was wearing a tuxedo just like Viktor only his was leaner body and his tie was an electric pink. His black hair was blond frosted the tips. Silver wire rimmed glasses rested on his perfectly sculpted nose. Before they were within earshot she whispered her partner, "Viktor is he…"

"Flamier than a dragon's breath? Yes. One day you'll meet his partner." He whispered back before the agent stood to meet them.

"Viktor there you are! I've been waiting forever darling!" Dorian said giving Viktor an air kiss on each cheek. Then he turned his attention on Hermione looking her up and down with a critical eye. "So this is the bride." He said quietly.

"Yes she is. Dorian Collins this is my chosen wife, Hermione Granger." Viktor introduced them to one another.

"Hmmm…turn around girl." Dorian said not taking his eyes off the young woman. Hermione hesitated and looked at Viktor who need. She slowly turned around in a circle and stopped to face the agent. "Well starting from the top and working our way down the hair needs help. It needs to be straighter and lighted in color to be fashionable. You need wear more make up to highlight your eyes and take attention away from the fact that you aren't wearing enough jewelry on your ears and neck. You're a bit on the short side and way too curvy. Thin is in." He told her bluntly while walking back to the table.

The two young people were shocked. Hermione because she had never been so openly criticized about her appearance before, and Viktor because he had never once heard Dorian speak to anyone like that. They sat together in silence when the waiter came to take their drink order. Before either could say anything Dorian ordered for them. "Viktor will have a Firewhisky and the girl will have some water with lemon." The waiter nodded and walked off as the two once again stared at the older man. "What? If she's going to lose weight than she might as well start now."

Little did they know that was the beginning of long meal of harsh comments and cruel judgments. He nit picked at everything she did. Hermione wasn't sitting up straight enough, she was eating too much, she wasn't holding her silverware correctly, and she was talking about appropriate topics for the dinner table. Finally when it was time for dessert and he ordered fruit when she really wanted the cheesecake Hermione had had enough.

"That's it. What's your problem. I realize that I don't really know what to do in high-class society or around celebrities, but that doesn't give you any right to treat me the way you have. I know there are certain ways I'm going to have to act in public with Viktor when we get married, but I'm not going to change who I am for those brief moments of the day." She nearly yelled.

Dorian looked at her for a long time before turning to Viktor. "Darling why don't you go to the bar for a while? Hermione and I need to have some girl time."

A/N: And that's where I'm leaving you. The next chapter should be up much soon than this was, so I hope you will continue to read Fated. Until next time!


	13. Explanation

A/N: First of all may I say thank you to everyone who hates Dorian. There's nothing that makes me happier than reaction to what I write. "Update soon." is always fun to hear because I know you like the story, but when you say "I hate that guy! May I kill him?" It just make my happy meter shoot up ten points. ^ ^ But you have all waited long enough for this chapter so why don't you go and read it.

Explanation

Tension between girl and agent was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Hermione was clutching her napkin so hard her knuckles were white. Dorian was looking calmly at her while sipping his wine it was impossible to tell what was going though his head. The young witch knew she should calm down before she said something rash, but right now her anger was getting the best of her. "You have no right making the comments you did. My appearance is none of your business." She bit out. "I hate wearing a lot of jewelry because I think it looks gaudy. Thin natural looking makeup is better for the skin and keeps me from looking like a clown or a whore. I'd rather be curvy than look like a walking skeleton. Short can be cute." Hermione took a deep breath, "And the only ones who can make comments about my hair are my mother and sister."

"Well I'm glad you think that, but as of yesterday your opinion stopped mattering. You are going to be Viktor Krum's wife in three months. Do you even know what that means? You have to keep up appearances for the sake of his career." The man said casually.

"His career depends on his skills as a Seeker not the appearance of his wife!" Hermione was breathing hard now. She'd rather be in Potions class right now paired up with Malfoy than talking to Dorian.

"My dear you really must learn to control your temper. You face is becoming blotchy. Not a pretty picture."

"Trust me, if I was out of control you wouldn't be sitting there in one piece."

"Ahh, yes. I forgot you are the Great Hermione Granger: War hero, most intelligent witch of the age, and friend to Harry Potter. You are going to have to give those titles up darling. They are much too brutish for your image. Viktor's wife need to be delicate and refined. I signed you up for some housewife classes. Viktor mailed me earlier about medical training, but I am afraid you simply cannot take part in that. What Viktor needs is a nice, obedient, pretty little housewife. You…" Dorian's little speech was cut short when water was poured over his head.

"I am Hermione. I am a person with dreams and goals in life. I know who I am and what I want in the future." Hermione was standing up empty pitcher in hand. She was visibly shaking with anger. "There is nobody in the world who can change any of that! I've worked hard in this world to earn respect, and I expect that if I give it than I will receive it in return."

Dorian once again stared at her than nodded slowly. "So you have spirit, and a backbone to match." He smiled up at her slowly. "Very good." The expression on his face was suddenly very different from just a moment ago; it was soft and thoughtful very much like the expression the Weasley brothers or Harry gave her. "You can sit back down now. We still need to talk." He said kindly motioning to her seat. Hermione sat back down eyeing the man carefully. He in turn muttered a quick spell to dry off and smiled at her.

"I am sorry if I was rude earlier, but I did have my reasons." He said taking a sip of wine. Hermione just raised an eyebrow as is if saying 'And those reasons would be?'

"You see my dear the life of a celebrity wife is not an easy one, especially in the Quidditch world. I wanted to test you to see how you would hold up to criticism. I must say that although you did not respond in the way I would have liked you did defend yourself and that is a very good thing."

Hermione looked at Dorian in total and utter confusion. "Testing me? I don't understand." The bewildered young woman said quietly.

Dorian once again looked at her thoughtfully, "Hermione you are already famous in the Wizarding world. You are one of the Great Heroes of the second war, but when you get married to Viktor that status is immediately going to come second to being his wife. For the rest your life you will be 'Viktor Krum's wife' first and 'Hermione the Hero' second."

"I still don't understand."

"Quidditch wives can be just as famous as their husbands. When the husband is a star he will appear at charity balls, interviews, photo shoots, and other events. If it's not on the field than ninety percent of the time the player's wife will be at his side. You heard of Silvia Lindsey right?" Hermione nodded. The woman was one of the most famous in all the Wizarding World. She set the fashion trends for witches everywhere. "Twenty years ago she was a nobody until she married Evan Lindsey. He became a Quidditch Hall of Famer and now he is a World Cup coach." Hermione had no idea who he was talking about. The extent of her Quidditch knowledge consisted of the Hogwarts teams and the Chuddley Cannons.

"All the time people were taking his photo his wife was right there with him. The media started noticing her amazing sense of style and fashion and asked where she got her clothes. Almost instantly she became a fashion icon. Witches from all around hang on her every word." He paused to make sure she was following. Hermione still looked slightly confused, but it seemed the light was finally starting to flicker on in her mind. "The only reason she got to where she is today is because she started out as 'Evan Lindsey's wife' had she married anyone else she would still be a nobody."

"But I don't want that kind of fame. I want people to respect me for my own accomplishments. And I don't want to use Viktor's fame for anything." The young woman said softly in almost a sad tone.

"Oh I know you don't. I knew the moment I read the letter Viktor sent me about you wanting to continue your education. You see the thing is you may not want to use Viktor's fame for you own gain, but there are plenty of others will think that you do. Other player's wives, fans, other celebrities, even some of his own family."

"So…"

"So they will do the only thing they know how to do. They will try to drive you away."

"Huh?"

"Oh innocent, darling, sweet, naïve Hermione you still are not understanding, are you? These people will insult you, bully you, and do whatever possible to keep you away from Viktor and the public eye. Some of them will do it because in their minds they are somehow protecting Viktor. Other will do it because they will get jealous of all the attention you two will be getting. And trust me you will be getting a lot of attention."

The realization hit Hermione like a ton of bricks. Now she knew what he was saying, "How…how will they try and do this?"

Dorian sighed and took a bite of cake in front of him before pushing the rest of the plate to her. "I have seen it done in many different ways. It really depends on the witch or wizard. Women have a tendency to attack you in private. Saying things very much like the things I said earlier this evening. They will make comments and remarks about everything from your looks to your education to your choice in friends. Viktor had a girlfriend for a short time. Once he took her to a game and at first everything was good. However by the end of the game the poor thing was in tears even though Bulgaria won the game. The other wives tore her to shreds in a matter of hours. Shortly after that she broke up with Viktor." Dorian looked at her gravely. "They will try and do the same thing to you only you will not have the luxury of breaking up with him."

Hermione had paled ever so slightly. She knew that being in the spotlight with Viktor would be hard, but she had no idea what she was in for. Or maybe she did. She remembered all the comments and letters she received in her forth yeart just because people thought she was dating him. If that's how people reacted when she was simply dating him what kind of reaction would marrying him get? "What…what should I do?" She asked poking at the cake.

"Well…and I know this is going to sound impossible…but you are going to have to endure it. You have to let them make the comments and pull their petty pranks. That is probably the only way you can really protect yourself from them." He said with a sympathetic smile.

"I have to just to live with it? I can't do that. I refuse to let anyone treat me like that!" Hermione exclaimed with a mixture of anger and helplessness clearly written on her face. "I don't take things lying down."

"You have no other choice Hermione. If you fight back as you did with me than you will make more enemies than friends. People will see you as hostile and the press will have a field day writing about how wild you act. Silence will show those who wish to hurt you that you are here to stay. People will see how you are being treated and start to befriend you. Than after you have established yourself than you can fight back, but as a new wife you cannot show weakness or they will rip you apart."

Hermione bit her bottom lip, but nodded a little. Dorian smiled a bit, "You will be fine. If can you fight Death Eaters than you can face those old Quidditch hags strong and proud." Hermione managed to smile just a little bit, and nodded. What were Quidditch wives compared to Death Eaters? Or even Malfoy for that matter.

"Now that you understand I need to know when your next available day is." He said leaning back in his seat with a smile. "I think you hair is quiet lovely, however it should be trimmed a little. And we need to go shopping. There are quiet a few events coming up that you are going to need dresses and dress robes for. In less than a month you will be fully prepared to face the world as a Quidditch wife or soon to be wife I guess you could say."

"Wait…when you say other wives…does that mean there are a lot of married men on Viktor's team." Hermione asked.

Dorian looked at the girl sort of shocked, "Hermione…Viktor was the only single man left on the team. The last wedding of a Bulgarian Quidditch player was nearly three years ago." He shook his head, "We really to get you studied up on teams and their players." He muttered to himself.

"Well I'm sorry I don't know everything about Qudditch." Hermione said pouting a little. "I have better thing to do than watch a bunch of people fly around on brooms and get beat up."

"Please never say that in public or you may have a mob chase you with torches and pitchforks." Dorian laughed, "But off record…" He leaned in closer, "I think it's a dumb game. If it not for the handsome hunks flying around on the brooms I would never waste a second though on the sport."

Hermione's mouth hung open not sure what to say. "Right. Well that's nice…I guess." She looked down at the almost finished cake letting the awkwardness seep into her skin. "So…umm…what exactly is going on in a month?" She asked trying to change to subject. "It sounds like a pretty big deal."

"Opening Week of course! It's the week before the regular Qudditch season starts. Throughout the week there are team parties, balls, banquets, interviews, photo shoots, and so much more! It's the first time the public gets to see the teams together since the last season. This year is especially important because last year the Quidditch season was almost non-existent due to the war."

"Let me guess. Since this year will be even bigger than normal and being the new girl in town will be even harder for me to do. I have to out glam everyone if I want even the slightest hope of surviving the world of the Qudditch wife. After all from what you've told me it seems that people only care what's on the outside not what's one the inside of a person."

"They do. Well not all do, but there are enough of them you have to keep on top of the fashion world." Just as he finished his sentence Viktor came back to the table. He had a glass of water in hand and looked so bored it was almost funny.

"I can not keep still and vatching. Things looked calmer over here so I thought it vould be a good idea to come back."

Dorian smiled, "Everything went just as planned. I have to admit she is everything you told me she would be and more. Oh, and you would not believe the things I have planned for her. On Opening Week you will have the prettiest witch on you arm." The agent rubbed his hands together in a very mad scientist sort of way. "Now, Hermione back to my question: when can we go shopping?"

Hermione thought about it carefully what she was about to say because it could spell out her doom. "On Saturday my mom, sister, and future mother in-law want to take me out so we can get some ideas for the wedding. How about you join us?"

"Of that would be wonderful! I can not wait to meet you family!" He said with a small squeal. The young witch swallowed a little wondering what she just got herself into. The rest of the meal went nicely. Everyone was comfortable with each other and Hermione ordered a second dessert without any nasty comments attached to it. However the night came to a quick end and the couple had to say good-bye to Dorian. Before he saw them off the older man offered his apologies once again for his earlier comments. Since everything had been explained to her Hermione was more than happy to forgive.

On their way out Dorian overheard a bit of their conversation, "Why didn't you apologize you me?" Hermione scolded.

"Vhy do I have to apologize?" Viktor asked.

"Because you didn't defend me. AT ALL!"

"But I knew he vas going to say that stuff. I could not interfere."

"What if it was another guy saying those things? Than would you have stayed silent."

"Of course not!"

"Sure…"

"I promise."

Dorian smiled to himself and shook his head, "Not engaged for a week and they already sound married." He said quietly and went back to his place with a great deal on his mind.

A/N: Alright everyone that's it for now! I'm sorry Viktor didn't show up much in this chapter, but don't worry you will see much more in the future. But be glad my wonderful readers for I have now started summer vacation therefore I have MUCH more time to write. Chapter thirteen is well under way. The girls are going shopping! ^ ^ Tell me what you think and I will you next time.


	14. Shopping

I hope you'll all forgive me for this late chapter. I'm not the best updater, but I do my best to give you guys something that will make it worth the wait. So let's see how I did. On with the story!

Disclaimer: I make no money writing this fanfic. J.K. owns all! Well except my OC's. Those guys are mine.

Shopping

Bored. That was the best word to describe how Hermione was feeling at the moment. All day she had been dragged from shop to shop by two mothers, a sister, and an agent who knew more about fashion than all the ladies put together. At the moment she was taking a rare moment away from the pack of wild shoppers to simply think about what she had done in the past few hours. When she planned the shopping trip she honestly that they five of them would walk around and window shop a little. Maybe buy something here and there. Well…that's not how it turned out to say the least.

It started early in the morning when Mari, Molly, Ginny, and Dorian picked Hermione up early in the morning before she had got a chance to drink her first cup of coffee and dress properly for the day. She was given five minutes to change which was just enough time to make herself partially decent looking. Than again maybe not. All she had time to dress in was an old gray tee-shirt, some faded jeans, and Viktor's team hoodie, which she stole the night before, and a plain black pair of shoes. Dorian took one look at her and shook his head. "This might take a little more time than I thought." He muttered to himself.

First thing first was the salon. Though her hair was already much tamer than it had been in her earlier years it still needed a little work. By the time she was done her tresses matched those of any model or actress. Next were her nails; her fingers and toes were trimmed, filed, and painted to perfection. All the ladies, and Dorian, received the same treatment thank to Harry and Viktor's generosity. Those two things alone took up the entire morning. After a light lunch it was time for the main event: the shopping!

All four quickly learned that Hermione was brutally when it came to choosing clothes. She was fast to reject the frilly clothes Mari and Molly chose because it was more fitting for a child's doll than a growing young woman. The glittery low cut stuff was also out of the question for it was simply not what a married woman should wear. Dorian soon caught onto what kind of clothes Hermione was looking for and it was he who mostly helped her when it came to building her new wardrobe. Mostly they were sleek and simple however with the help of some colorful accessories all the outfits enhanced her natural beauty. Mostly the new clothes would be worn at games, interviews, photo shoots, and informal team parties.

Next came the dresses. Oh the dresses! According to Dorian she needed twelve just for opening week alone plus another six for the remainder of the season. In that matter Hermione had almost no choice. They went to a place called "The Boutique" where Madam Lori would help them put dresses together. All of the designs would be original so everyone put their minds together in order to come up something that would dazzle everyone.

"No pale green. It would make her look sick." Madam Lori said as they were looking at all the different cloth samples.

"No green period." Hermione said causing a little giggle from Ginny.

"Once a Gryffindor always a Gryffindor." The red head said with a twinkle in her eye that reminded Hermione very much of Dumbledore.

"I agree. Green is the color for Ireland, who is as you know a long standing rival of Bulgaria, it simply isn't right to wear enemy colors. Especially during Opening Week." Dorian added examining the different fabrics.

"And she can't have any black dresses, or at least wear there, until after the wedding." Molly said as Mari nodded in agreement.

"Why can't I wear black?" Hermione asked. Not that she wore a lot of black in the first place, but she was inquisitive.

"Hermione dear," Mari answered. "Wearing black during and engagement is bad luck." Dorian and Hermione looked at each other both remembering the dress she wore the night the met. Neither said anything because after all it didn't count since they didn't know…right?

"I don't want to wear pink either. If I'm going to be his fiancée than I have to look mature. Pink would give off the impression that I'm just a little girl who doesn't know anything." Hermione also thought that would give people more ammo to make fun of her.

"I think a nice cream color would be good."

"Maybe a royal purple?"

" Oh! And red!"

When all the colors were picked out they moved on to the next step, what the cut of the dresses would look like. Ginny immeditly had something to say about this. "It has to make her curves jump out." The Weasley daughter said giving her best fried a little nudge with her elbow.

"Ginny!" Hermione's face was just a shade lighter than that of a tomato.

"Hermione you have fantastic tits! You should show them off."

"Ginny!" Her mother said in a scolding tone.

"Oh come on! We all know she has the best tits of anyone in this room, well maybe with exception of you Mrs. Krum."

"Ginny!" All three women nearly shouted.

"I know my name you don't have to keep saying it!"

Madam Lori was little rather baffled at the group while Dorian was trying to fight an obvious smile. Hermione and Mari were both turning a bright shade of red, Ginny was snickering, and Molly was muttering something that sounded something like "…my daughter…" and "…no manners…".

"Well it would be a good idea to ummm…highlight some of your…uhh…more…hmm…" Madam Lori seemed at a loss of words. This only made Ginny start really laughing and sent Dorian into a "coughing fit".

"Okay than the dresses will be cut to draw at least a little attention to Hermione's more womanly assets." Dorian finally said after his "coughing fit". Everyone nodded eager to get on a new subject.

"Some of the dresses will have to be full length for the more formal events. Those should be the darker ones, expect maybe one or two, and they should be more modestly cut." Dorian said writing something down in a little notebook. "There should be at least one with a short skirt for the First Practice."

"What's the First Practice?" Hermione wanted to know.

"Oh it's just a formality. For about an hour the boys fly around on their little brooms and pretend to be practicing. Really it's just to show off their new skills, and their families." Dorian explained.

"I remember vhen Viktor took all of us to the First Practice. After the players are done showing off there is a party vhere everyone catches up vith one another. All the players are such nice young men. They all have very good manners and are very respectful." Mari recalled. "But the girls…the vives most…they vere…polite? Not very social around all the other vives. Most seemed more intent on getting their photo taken than talking with anyone outside the press."

"That's what they do. Mind you not all of the wives are that way. There are one or two exceptions on every team, but many simply love their husbands' fame rather than the husbands themselves." Hermione sighed at Mari and Dorian's words. She had a sneaking suspicion that she would be one of the exceptions. In all honesty she didn't care for fame. It made it hard to get a private moment to herself, and it meant you had to watch every move you made even more closely in public.

"Alright ladies," Madam Lori said interrupting the conversation. "I think I have a couple of ideas for the dresses. Now is there anything else you want to take care of while you're here?" She asked the group. Everyone shook their heads. There was some polite good-byes, a few hugs and kisses, and everyone went they're own homes for dinner. Before Mari and Molly left they reminded her about the wedding. They wanted her to talk to Viktor about what kind of plans they wanted to make fore the wedding. Hermione promised she would and went home to Crystal Air.

Viktor was still at practice. Yes, the regular season wouldn't officially start until Opening Week, but the world class Seeker told her that most coaches only gave their players three months of the year off. The time outside of the season was devoted to training, building stronger teams, and coming up with new plays. He had given her his practice schedule and told her that if she ever wanted to drop by and watch she was more than welcome to. "Most of the guys vould velcome the sight of a pretty girl." He teased the other night. She had smiled and blushed at that comment. Even though it had only been a few days since she moved in with him they had already started to get comfortable with each other. Hermione smiled at the memory as she headed to her room.

When she got there she found all the clothes that had been bought that day either neatly folded and tucked away or hung up in the closet. She looked over the clothes not really remembering what had been purchased over the course of the day. Her eyes landed on a few dresses and shirts the witch really didn't remember. Hermione took one off and hanger and looked at it carefully. They confused her because they looked a bit baggy for her figure. Then it hit her like a brick wall. The unknown clothes had been snuck in with the other because they were maternity clothes! Hermione gave a little squeak and dropped garment. Those moms would just not let the idea of grandchildren go. Quickly she threw it in the closet and shut the door. She flopped on the bed face first until she heard Viktor knock at her door.

"Hermione. Are you home yet?" His little witch opened up the door. "There you are. I though ve could…vhy do you look like the vorld is coming to an end?" His hand went to her forehead to check for a fever.

"I've spent the entire day shopping with my mom, my sister, your mom, and your agent. And I found maternity clothes in my closet." She said leaning her head on his shoulder.

He took her words for a moment than began to laugh, "That sounds like something my mother would do." He brushed the hair out of her face so he could look in her in the eye. "Velcome to my family!"

A/N: …Well, like always tell me what you think. I know Viktor hasn't been in the chapters a lot, but next one is going to be centered on the star couple. See ya next time everyone!


	15. Picnic

A/N: Hello everyone. Here is the long awaited next chapter. I hope you don't mind that it's longer than other chapters have been. I hope you guys like it.

Picnic

The days started to fall into a peaceful pattern for the young couple. As easy as breathing they fell in a routine that prevented them from getting into any more awkward situations. They woke up, went to two different bathrooms, showered, and dressed for the day. After all of that they both headed downstairs to the dinning room for breakfast. While eating they would keep talking to a minimum since neither was much of a morning person. They discussed their up coming day and what they had planned, but that was it. What else was there to say before your first cup of coffee? The couple thought it was a perfect way to start the day. He would ask her what she planned to study and would even offer to help her on some of the regular class stuff once he got back from practice later that night. It turned out he was pretty talented at Charms. He would leave for practice and she would head to the manor's library where she spent most of the day. Later in the evening he would return home and they would have dinner. Dinner conversations were much livelier and fun filled. They would talk about anything and everything.

It was at dinner and after dinner where they learned the most about each other. Hermione learned that Viktor hated peas, loved muggle music, tried to fly when he was three years old by jumping off his house roof, and was afraid of needles. Viktor learned that Hermione liked to write as much as she liked to read, she hated being an only child, every other Sunday she would visit her parent's grave site, and her favorite dessert was fresh brownies. Sometimes when joking was set aside they would talk about the war and the darker things of the past.

Hermione had a breakdown when she told him about her parents. Viktor held her silently as she sobbed into his chest telling him about how much she regretted no getting to be with them in their last moments, or how much she missed them telling her to brush her teeth in their letters from home. She cried for a long while. When she had calmed down a little he whispered, "They still live in your heart. You're not alone. You can alvays come to me if you need to cry." He smiled as he brushed her tears away. "And I can always remind you to brush your teeth." Though neither said anything out loud it was that night where they stopped being two people forced to marry and truly become an engaged couple.

Now, just a few days later, Hermione stood at a table trying to decide what she should do with her day. Sitting before her was a stack of books that she needed to study for a big test, but she was having one of those rare moments when studying just did not like seem like an enjoyable way to pass the time. Outside summer was in full swing calling her name. The weather was warm and beautiful. It was the kind of day that brought out a person's inner child. The want to play kids games, and eat ice cream was almost overwhelming. She gave the books one last glance before running down the fall and into the garden. All the flowers were in full bloom filling the air with a sweet fragrance. The various trees had heavy branches from ripening fruit. What a beautiful day!

Hermione walked around a little dirt path that cut the garden into sections lost in thought. Today was meant for something special, but what it was she wasn't sure yet. She could go visit the family at the Burrow…but that could lead to another "what are your wedding plans" talk with Molly. In all honesty Viktor and Hermione never talked about the wedding. It was almost the "Untouchable Topic". Visiting the Krums would mean a run in with Kamen which was not some she was ready through. She paced back and forth. What should she do? Then it hit her. "Nifty!" She called running inside and heading to her room. The house elf popped into the hall running to keep up with his unofficial mistress.

"What is it Miss. Hermione needs?" He asked trying to keep up with the giddy.

"Can you and the others make up a picnic basket for me? Oh, and please pack a huge batch of chocolate chips cookies." She ordered while expertly finding her way though the maze of halls. When she needed to stretch her legs out after studying she walked around the halls and explored. Now she knew the place like the back of her hand.

Nifty looked like he was about to cry tears of happiness. This was the first time the young woman had ever made a request. Though Hermione gave up on freeing house elves a long time ago she was still very reluctant on using their services. "Of course we can Miss! What should we pack in the basket?" He asked eagerly.

The bride to be arrived to in her room and headed straight to the closest. "How about those big sandwiches that Viktor loves? The ones with all the layers. And some fruit, cheese, and some honey cake." Her mouth was speaking of food, but her mind was elsewhere. She could not seem to find the right outfit. Flipping though all the new clothes was a task in itself, but she found what she was looking for. Carefully she pulled out a light blue sundress. This was the one! "Make sure the cookies are packed separately." She gave the house elf a bright smile. "Please make sure to be quick about it." The little creature popped out of the room as quickly as he came.

Hermione changed quickly and put on some matching heels. Around her neck a small tear drop pendent on a thin silver chain, an engagement gift from her future in-laws. She did not feel like messing around with her hair too much, so she simply combed it until it as shiny as a new Knut. A touch of lipstick and a small amount of blush was all the makeup she put on. She smiled at her reflection; once in a while she really felt the need to be pretty. And this was one of those times.

She made her way back to the garden where she spotted some blue flowers. Careful not to break the entire plant she snapped a few off and braided them into her hair. Everything was ready, now all she needed was the food.

As if reading her mind a house elf popped in front of her with one big basket and a smaller one, "Here is the cookies and picnic basket for Miss." The house elf was Gabby, the reigning queen of the kitchen. She always made sure that the food was prepared to perfection. "I made sure there was a blanket at the bottom of the big basket." Gabby told her with a bright smile.

"Thank you Gabby." Hermione took the baskets into her own hands and took a deep breath. Now that she could use magic legally she could Apparate. She took the test a few days earlier and passed with flying colors, of course. She took a deep breath concentrating on Apparating to the fields where the Bulgarian team was training. Viktor told her they practiced five hours straight in the morning, had a two hour lunch break before practicing five. He usually went to the local cafes or pubs with his team mates, but today Hermione wanted to surprise him with a picnic!

Slowly she walked around the field and stadium. It was huge, and there were people everywhere. With the season close at hand people were preparing everything for the upcoming games and festivities. She knew that only those directly connected to the stadium and the players were allowed in. Press, fans, and rival teams were kept out by the series of spells. Hermione went up to a man who was hanging up posters around the place, "Umm...excuse me. Can you tell me how to get to the team's practice area?" She asked him. She knew that it would be time for lunch in about fifteen minuets so she had to hurry.

The man looked at her. There was more hair on his face than his head and it was all white. "Vhy do you vant to know that?" He asked in a deep voice. Hermione smiled a little nervously and nodded.

" I wanted to surprise Viktor with a picnic." She told him simply holding up the basket. The man stroked his beard and looked her over. By now everyone knew who she was and her connection to Viktor. But he was still a little dubious about letting her know the team's location.

"A picnic you say?"

Hermione nodded, "Yes. And I brought some cookies for the team." She reached inside the basket and handed him one. "Maybe you could try one and let me know how they taste." Maybe bribery would get her an answer faster. He accepted it and took a big bit. His expression changed from on of suspicion to one of delight.

"It is very good Miss. I am Mladen, and I have been vorking at this stadium for over fifty years. I am the Head Caretaker of these grounds." He finished the cookie and motion for her to follow. "It is not often a vife comes to a practice. May I ask what the occasion is?"

"I just felt like it. It's a beautiful day out, and I wanted to spend a little time with Viktor. That's all." She was concentrating on the path they were taking. That way she could get there by herself next time.

"Because you felt like it. That is very refreshing to hear. I am sure Mr. Krum vill be very pleased to hear that." Hermione blushed lightly just before she abruptly stopped and gaped at the sight before her. Different tunnels, stairways, and halls had quickly led the pair to the practice fields. They were three times the size of a normal field. That way they could fit all of the regular players, reserves, and the training equipment on the field without too it being over crowded. "Come I will take you to meet the coach." Mladen told her braking her out of her trance. They approached a huge barrel chested man. He was a professional athlete gone fat after years of retirement. Still Hermione was pretty sure he could break her in half. He had sandy colored hair with bits of grey. His deep green eyes were sharp and perceptive. "Coach Borislav may I introduce Miss. Hermione. She is here to give Viktor a surprise picnic." Mladen told the other man quietly.

"Is that right? Vell Miss. Hermione I hate to be the one to tell you this, but lunch is not for another ten minutes." He told her sternly. "And I never let the team go early. They have to stay until the very last second. No exceptions."

"I understand, sir. I'm more than wiling to wait. I brought cookies for the teams as well. I'm fine with waiting until everyone is done at once." She said once again holding up the cookie basket. The coach stared for a minute at the basket before lifting its lid to inspect the contents. In a second two cookies were in his hand and one was in his mouth.

"...ave...o…abe…umm…efore…the oys… et..em…all…" He tried to say between mouthfuls.

"Pardon?"

Coach Borislav swallowed and smiled, "I said I have grab some before the boys get them all. So you are here to surprise Viktor. Than get behind me." He told her standing in front of her so she was completely hidden behind his enormous body. He brought a whistle to his lips and let out a sharp shill note. He yelled something in Bulgarian. In seconds she heard feet hit the ground. "Alright you worthless bunch for no talent hacks, I am going to give you an early lunch." A wave of confusion was heard from the players. "You have our Seeker to thank for that." All eyes turned to Viktor who looked just as, if not more so, confused as his team mates.

Hermione decided that would be a good to come out of hiding. She peeked out from behind the coach, "Umm…surprise." Was all she could think to say. Suddenly she felt dozens of eyes trained on her. Trying not to look as shy as she felt Hermione walked over to Viktor and held up the bigger basket. "I thought we could have a picnic lunch."

"Viktor's got himself a good catch." One voice said.

"My vife has never done that."

"You better hold on to this one Viktor. Vhen you are not looking some better looking man vill snatch her up."

There was some more words, mostly in Bulgarian, a few whistles, and playful banter. Viktor was turning a visible shade of red at all the teasing. "Boys I brought something for all of you as well." She handed the nearest man the second basket. He flipped it open and smiled.

"Ve vill take care of this basket. You two go have fun." He said pushing Viktor forward a little. The young man took the hint. Taking the basket from Hermione in one hand and her own hand in his free one they walked away trying to ignore the teasing from behind them. Neither said a word until Viktor stopped under a large tree just outside the stadium. They stood there in a tense silence unsure of what to say.

It was Hermione spoke up first, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to embarrass you in front of your team mates. I just wanted to surprise you. I really didn't feel like studying today and I thought you might enjoy a picnic. I swear didn't know they would all make such a big deal out of it. You don't have…" Her babble was cut of by a firm kiss which was clearly meant to shut her up. At some point he must have put the basket down because now his arms were around her waist holding her tight in place.

He broke the kiss after a moment, "Vhy are you apologizing? They are all jealous that I get to marry such a vonderful girl. None of their vives have every brought picnics or sveets for the team. Teasing is just their vay to hide their jealousy." He kissed her once more.

She giggled a little looking down, "Well it's good to know you aren't made. Help me unpack this stuff so we can start eating." Try as she might there was not preventing the increasing tempo of her heartbeat and obvious heat rising to her face. As they set everything out giddiness started to seep though the air. There hands would brush up against one another and they would blush. Their shoulders would bump and both would laugh a little unsure of what else to do.

The quiet was soft and warm very much like the day itself. They had both filled their plates and glasses before they started talking again. "You know you are not the first visitor I have had today." Viktor said biting into a sandwich.

"Oh? Who else?"

"My mother."

"Why did she come?"

Viktor sighed and finished off his first sandwich before picking up another. "She vanted to know if ve vere ever going to start planning the vedding." He took a bite as Hermione thought over the words.

"I guess there's no avoiding it. We might as well start now." She said distractedly. Her partner nodded, but didn't say anything. "Mum and Mama seem eager to help. So if we can give them something to do maybe they'll stay out of our hair for a while."

"Mama?"

"Your mum told me to call her that. Anyway maybe if we chose some colors we could leave the decorating up to them." In all honestly Hermione never wanted a big wedding. She had always wanted something small and intimate. However that was not something they would be allowed. The wedding would be big, and there was a lot of planning to do.

Viktor polished off his next sandwich and watched her closely. He was getting good at reading her emotions, and by the downward cast of her head he knew that she was troubled. "Hermione vhat is the matter?" He asked moving to her so that he could take her in his arms.

"There's just so much we have to do for the wedding. I had to study for the test. You have to train. We both have to prepare for Opening Week. I guess the weight of it all hadn't hit me until just now." Hermione shifted in his arms in order to look up at him. "How are we going to do it all?"

Viktor studied her for a moment before bursting out in laughter. What else could he do? She was looking at him with such and adorable pout and she was obviously worried about things that could easily be taken care of. He kissed forehead, "Silly girl. Is that vhat you are so vorried about?" He chuckled.

"I fail to see what is so funny."

"Did it ever occur to you that ve could hire a vedding planner? And vith a little help from there family the vork vill be less, right?" He asked her starting to tickle her to coax out a smile.

"But wedding planners are so expensive." She tried to protest and fight the urge to laugh.

"Are you saying I do not make enough money to afford one? I am the best Seeker in the vorld." He said still tickling making little giggles escape from her mouth. "Or have your forgotten?" He asked continuing his attack.

"No…" Now she was outright laughing trying to push away his persistent hands. "Stop please." Viktor smiled evilly.

"Not until you say 'Viktor is the best Seeker in the vorld. I am lucky to have a man who can buy me anything I vant'."

"Never!" Tears were starting to come out of her eyes .

"Oh vell. I guess I cannot stop."

"Viktor is the best Seeker in the world. I am lucky to have a man who can buy me anything I want!" Hermione practically screamed. Viktor dropped his hands laughing at the flush on the witch's face. Bam! A honey cake hit him in the head. He simply picked it up and took a bit.

"Fine! I'll hire a wedding planner. But you get to do the planning with the guys."

"How hard could that be?" Hermione smirked. She knew what her adopted brother were capable of, and she knew they were not going to make it easy for her groom.

"Tomorrow I'll get hold of hire someone and talk with our mother's about what need to be done first."

"That sounds like a plan." Hermione took the rest of the cake and finished it. The rest of the time the talk was light and causal. The time passes quickly between jokes, kisses, a small food fight, and a brief nap in each others arms.

"Viktor! Hey Viktor! You have to come back to practice!" A voice called rousing the couple from their sleep. Viktor was the first to stand up. He stretched a little and bent down to give Hermione one more kiss.

"I have to go. Practice should not go over today, so I vill see you at home okay?" She nodded her head. "Thank you for the surprise. I loved it." And he headed back to the fields. Hermione remained where she was thinking about what had happened in the last few hours. Sure it was a simple picnic. But she had come to a realization while they were talking and teasing. Hermione was falling in love with her fiancée.

"I better get home. Ginny is going to want to hear all about this." A few waves of her wand and she was packed up and heading back to the manor with more on her mind than just wedding plans.

A/N: Okay what did you think? Did you love it? Did you hate it? Was it too long? Tell me! Please? I love the feed back I get back from you guys. See ya next time!


	16. Argument

A/N: Hello everyone. Let me start off by saying thank you to all the wonderful reviewers and convention well wishers. All the positive feed back warmed my heart. Next let me say I'm sorry for the major delay in updating. I won't get into all the details, but during the convention I went to I got word that a close family member went in the hospital. My heart wasn't into writing after that. Which brings me to my last thing: This chapter is totally and completely dedicated to "DesiGirl". She was the one who gave me the kick in the butt I needed to finish up and post this chapter. Thank you so much Girl. Alright on with the chapter!

Argument

"I wanted that book and you know it!"

"I have no idea vhat you mean. I had this book before you."

"I need that book. It has something really important for my up coming test."

"Vell I just had the urge to read a section of this book. And I got to it first so I get to use it first."

"You saw that I was reaching for it and you took it first." Hermione rubbed her temple while taking a deep breath. She had been arguing with Kamen for almost ten minutes over the book and it was getting her nowhere fast. Now more than ever she regretted coming over to Krum Manor. It had all started earlier that morning when she was struggling over a potion recipe she needed to have memorized for the test that was now only a few weeks away.

"This is impossible!" She yelled at the breakfast table. Since the test date was so close she had gotten in the habit of studying during meals. Viktor had looked up from his cup of coffee somewhat bewildered. It was rare for Hermione to show frustration in the academic field.

"Vhat is the matter?" He asked quietly.

"The problem is that I need to memorize this stupid potion for the test, but I can't do that because this stupid book only gives a brief description of the potion itself and only lists key ingredients. It doesn't say anything about how long to brew it or what kind of caldron is needed. There is mention of a silver spoon, but even than it doesn't tell me what I need to do with that." The poor witch buried her face in her hands. "I'm going to fail this test. I just know it." Her body was trembling while fighting off tears.

This was one of those moments where Viktor truly acted like a loving boyfriend. He stood up and walked over to her. "Hermione it is impossible for you to fail, and you know that." Pulling her up, with great care, he took her into his strong and comforting arms. "You are just overwhelmed right now. You have a lot on your plate right now. The test is coming up soon. That is followed by Opening Week. And than the vedding. Any other vitch vould have run away screaming by now." Hermione looked up at him with a smile.

"I'm being silly aren't I?" She asked.

"Yes, but you look cute doing it so it does not matter." Hermione smiled giddily. Viktor was right. She was overwhelmed. All she needed to do was calm down and sort though things in her mind.

"Okay, do you know where I may get a copy of the recipe?" She asked slowly cuddling against him.

"Knum Manor. I bet you could find vhat you need in the library."

"Would it be alright for me to just appear there unannounced and barrow a book?"

"Hermione." Viktor chided. "You are going to be family in a short time. It is as much your privilege as it is mine."

"Alright. I'll go get the book before I go and meet up with Iris."

"The vedding planner? Did you not just see her a few days ago?" Viktor asked sitting down with his betrothed still in his arms.

"Yes, but I have to see her again. She needs our answers." Iris Lovingstone was a sweet bubbly dumpling of a witch with a no-nonsense attitude when it came to helping people plan their dream wedding. The first day she gave Hermione a list of things she and Viktor had choose and plan. That very night they chose what colors they wanted, what flowers would be used for decoration, how big the guess list was going to be. And most importantly of all when the wedding would take place. It took almost the entire night to decide those things alone.

"Oh right." Viktor looked up at a clock on the wall. He had to be at practice soon. "I have to go soon. You may have become Coach's favorite, but he still makes me do laps vhen I am late."

"Then you better get going." She told him sliding off his lap so that he may get up and get to work. He took the hint and left her with a good-bye kiss. Hermione lingered for a few moments, before Flooing over to Krum Manor. A house elf greeted her, but everybody else it seemed was either out of the house or too busy to talk to her. That was just fine with her because it meant that nobody would get in her way when she got her book. She could be in and our before she knew it. The house elf led her to the library, and explained how she could go about finding a book.

"It is really simple Miss. All Miss has to do is think about what it is Miss wants to find. Then a glowy light will take Miss to the best book for Miss." The elf told her. When Hermione nodded her understanding the elf left her to look around at one of the most amazing libraries she ever had the chance to stand in. There were shelves in every available corner and wall. Some where even on the ceiling! Overstuffed chairs were shoved into any possible pocket of room. If she had the time she could easily just pick a book, sit herself down, and read to her heart's content. However at the moment she was in a rush, and was here for a single purpose. She thought about the recipe she needed and in a moment there was a glowing silver line leading her to one of the shelves way at the back of the room.

"Please let this be the right book." She muttered as she found her way to the shelf. Sure enough the book was glowing with the same silver light. The only problem was that it was just barely out of reach. She climbed on the shelf a little bit and almost reached the book when a hand came out of nowhere and took the book. When Hermione looked behind her she saw the person who held the lowest spot on her "People I Want to See Today List". Kamen. Which finally brings us back to where this whole story began.

"Kamen I can understand that you want to bully me. After all I am the Mudblood who is marrying your brother, but that book is very crucial to my test. Can you please find another way to make my life harder and just hand over the bloody book?" She bit out.

Kamen crossed his arms over his chest with the book in a right grip, "I still have no idea vhat you are talking about." He told her calmly giving a smirk.

"You said so yourself that you only want to read it. You don't actually need it. Can't you please just let me copy something out of it and then read it?" She asked anxiously. She needed to get that recipe quick because she had a meeting with Iris in just fifteen minutes. Thankfully Molly and Mari were meeting her there, so they could buy her some time.

"No. I need this book more than you. Get a copy somevhere else." He told her opening the book and taunting her by flipping though some of the pages. Hermione gave another sigh.

"Fine you pompous, pig headed, prick of a pureblood have it your way. Take the book. Torture me. We both know you're not going to read it. I need to go to a wedding planning meeting. I am going to come back. And when I come back you had be ready to hand that book over or I will hex you from here to Avalon." With that she turned on her heel and left. The wonderful thing about magical libraries was that you could not remove the book without the intention of reading it. Since she knew that Kamen was just using the book to bully her she knew the book would remain in the library. She also knew that Kamen would be too stubborn to let it go, so without a doubt she would be seeing him again that day.

Mari and Molly were already waiting for her when she arrived. "Oh, this is so exciting. I can't believe they finally started to make plans." Molly said as the three walked up to Iris's office.

"This takes me back." The Bulgarian woman gave a dreamy sigh. There was no way Hermione could understand the women's excitement and eagerness over the wedding. In all honesty the whole blasted thing was just another thing on her to do list.

"How nice of you two. Helping Hermione with the wedding I mean. I know at the moment she has her plate full with a million other things. You are so lucky to have these women by your side." Iris noted after all introductions were through.

"Oh yes, very lucky." Was the reply followed by a tight smile. 'I mean if you ignore the face that all they talk about is grandchildren and keep adding to the guest list than they are the prefect helpers.' She thought silently.

"Alright, now to business. Have you and Viktor decided a date?" Iris asked with quill and parchment in hand.

"Yes, we chose August 30th." Hermione said looking at her own roll of parchment.

"Hermione! That's the day before Harry, Ron, and Ginny start back at Hogwarts." Molly said quietly.

"I know." There were very logical reasons for choosing that date. First of all Viktor didn't have any games planned for that week. And second was because they thought the wedding and honeymoon would serve as a nice distracter for Hermione. She knew in her heart that the first weeks without Hogwarts and her friends would be the hardest, so if she was occupied with other things she wouldn't miss them as much.

"Very good." The planner said with a jotting down a note. "Now what will the wedding colors be?"

A small chuckle escaped Hermione's lips as she remembered the conversation had led to their decision. It involved a lot of tickling, some light teasing, a pair of scissors, a huge pillow fight, and two fish. She giggled again, "We chose maroon, plum, and cream."

Iris smiled as she added that to the list. "Now I know this is the hard part, but do you have and estimation about the guest list?"

"Yes we do. We think we're going to need at least two hundred invitations. And if every R.S. then we should have well over three hundred people." All chances of a small wedding were out the window. All the Weasley family, Krum family, Order members, friends from both schools, Viktor's team, and many others were being invited. Actually it seemed like ever person they ever said hello to in their lifetime was getting an invitation. Both of them had wanted to keep it small, but their parents and Dorian had all insisted that this needed to be a big deal. The Ministry was watching they're every move making sure that the law was being fulfilled. The couple even went so far as to make sure a few of the officials were on the invite list.

"Well that is an impressive number although the Malfoy wedding twenty years ago could rival that I suspect." Iris smiled and handed her a piece of parchment. "This is the next list you have to go over. And I did have a very important question to ask of you two. Will the wedding be magical or Muggle?" Hermione had an answer for the question, but for whatever reason it hurt. She always thought that her mother would be the one helping her plan the wedding. There would be a long flowing gown, tuxes, and a limo. Just the thought of that made her heart squeeze tightly.

"We thought that the ceremony could be magical. With dress robes, Bonding Ceremony, and all that stuff. The reception will be Muggle based. After all, this marriage is supposed to be centered on the idea that Purebloods and Muggleborns need give each other a chance." Her little speech was quiet as if she was speaking more to herself than anyone else.

"You know that is going to be expensive to have both."

"Yes, I understand. And you understand that I'm going to marry the World's greatest Seeker?" And that was the end of that topic. The rest of the meeting was basically about small details that could be sorted out later. She left the meeting in a tizzy. She was given a new list of things that she and Viktor needed to go over before the next meeting. Plus she was also given a stack of Muggle and Magical bridal magazines to look over and get ideas from. "When will I have time to do any of this?" She muttered before Flooing back to Krum Manor. Just as she predicted Kamen was sitting in one of the chairs holding onto the book.

"Vhat are you doing back? Vhy can you not just go to bookstore and get your own copy?" He asked crossly.

"Because I'm like you: stubborn." Hermione pulled out her wand. "I highly suggest you give me that book or I'll take it by force."

"I vould like to see you try." His wand was in his free hand. He opened his mouth to say something, but in an instant he was in the ground in a partial body bind. He looked up to see his future sister in law with a smirk on her face and the book in her hands.

"I fought Death Eaters. You are nothing compared to them. You never stop to talk to your opponent. You simply aim and shoot your spells. " She said sitting down in a chair. Out of her purse she pulled a quill and some parchment. It was quiet for a while. Hermione was engrossed in copying the potion and Kamen was trying to mend his wounded pride.

"Vhy did you not put me in a full bind?" He asked as he struggled to sit up. It looked like a worm struggling to come up for air.

"No reason. Just didn't feel like wasting a full hex on you." She answered not looking up from her work.

"I am not vorth the effort?" He asked indignity.

"Not really. You're just another bully. I've had to deal with your kind the entire time I've lived in the Wizarding world." She sighed. "You just another ignorant prick. All bark, but no bite."

"I have plenty of bite."

"No you don't. You would have used it the moment you saw me in the library. Instead you simply took the book I needed. I know some people who would have taken the opportunity to kill me." For the first time they looked each other in the eyes.

"I vould not kill you."

"I know. What I don't know is why you seem to dislike me."

"That is a polite way of saying it."

"You don't hate me, and we both know it. For whatever reason I irritate you, but you don't hate me." Kamen gave her an odd look. "What?"

"What made you change? Last time I made you cry." He asked thoughtfully.

"Last time I was emotionally unstable. I was going through a lot of hard times, and your words weren't making things easier. Normally I'm much stronger than that." Her voice was even almost cold. Her gaze was steady and cool. She had definitely changed from the girl he had seen at dinner. "So are you going to tell me?"

"Tell you vhat?"

"Why I irritate you."

Kamen sighed as he finally managed to sit up. "It is not you I guess. Its more of the attention you bring Viktor." He muttered.

"Huh?"

"I am a middle brother. I get no attention." He started out. Hermione suddenly got the sinking feeling that she knew where this conversation was going. "I was finally getting some attention from my parents. Phoenix University. Then the stupid a law comes up and suddenly and it is all about Viktor again." Kamen raised the pitch of his voice. "Viktor is going to get married. Viktor is going to give me a daughter. Poor Viktor is being married to pretty girl." He mimicked his mother.

"You think I'm pretty."

"No! That is vhat my mother thinks." Hermione smiled, but let him continue. "Is it so bad of me to vant some attention? Viktor already is a famous, rich, and now he gets to marry a beautiful vitch." There was a silence. Awkward on Kamen's part and annoyed on Hermione's.

"So they reason you treated me like trash was because you were jealous of Viktor?" She asked trying to keep her temper under control. Kamen looked away saying nothing. "I'm sorry, but you need a better reason than that."

"Vhat?"

"You sound like one of my adopted brothers, Ron." She undid the body bind and shook her head. "What is it with you two and wanting attention? You seemed to think you're the only ones who have ever lived in another's shadow." At the moment she wanted nothing more than choke the man in front of her. She knew it would help the irritation she was feeling at the moment. "I am the best friend of Harry Potter. I've been living in a shadow ever since I entered this world. Do I complain? No, because I know eventually I will create my own legacy that will be completely my own." She closed the book and stood as proud as any queen or goddess. "If I wasted my time feeling sorry for myself or making others miserable then I would have no time to better myself." She tossed the book at Kamen before walking out the door.

The young man sat still as she left. He felt disgusted with himself. She had not only pointed out his faults, but she proved herself the above his petty tricks. Hermione was the better person, and now he was forced to admit that. Slowly he stood with book in hand. For the first time since he entered the room he read the title "Charms and Potions for Healing the Heart". He took a deep breath in while running a hand though his hair. "Smart vitch." He muttered as he placed the book back on the shelf. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad having her in the family after all.

A/N: Okay guys tell me what you think. What do you think of Kamen? Is there anything you want to see happen in future chapters? Can you count all the times I used the word "book" in this chapter? That's it for now. See ya next time.


	17. Worries

A/N: I know it takes me a while to update guys, but I'm glad so many of you stick with me. Makes writing much easier. I had a good holiday season, but I didn't get what I wanted for Christmas: A beta. I'm still looking for one. Other than that I hope you enjoy this new chapter.

Worries

"Oh do stop pacing like that Viktor. Honestly this isn't the hardest thing she's ever done." Dorian said rubbing his temple as he watched the younger man walk back and forth. Every single brother from both families was fidgeting in chairs and on the floor of the same hall as their parents watched on knowingly.

"You do not know vhat you are talking about. You have not seen her like I have. She only gets a few hours of sleep every day. The only time she goes outside anymore is to visit the team during practice and that is only three times a veek." The pacing man said to his manager. "I can not even remember the last time she has eaten real meal. All she does is drink coffee and eat sandviches." This caused the matriarchs of the families to gasp.

"Well you should get used to that mate, because that's what happens when Hermione studies for a test." Harry said with a small chuckle. Currently everybody was waiting for the witch in question to finish up with the last portion of her test. Viktor wanted nothing more than for his girl to come out of that room and take her home for some rest. He thought about those dark bags under her eyes and the exhausted tone to her voice. He wanted to tuck her into to bed and let her sleep for week. Then make sure she ate until the color came back to her cheeks.

Just as he was thinking about her the young witch stumbled out of the room. Viktor was the first to get to her. He looked down her with concern making her smile back at her reassuringly. "It was hard. We had to do a lot of on the spot healing. They just came up with injuries I had to fix. Thinking on my feet hasn't always been my strongest suit." Her modesty wasn't quite convincing with a satisfied smile plastered on her face.

"So how do you think you did?" Bill asked as everybody was crowding her.

"I think I did rather well."

"So that is your last test?" Dorian asked.

"Yes. I have to wait three months for the results." She didn't seem too happy about the wait. Still she knew that there would be plenty to do until then. Opening Week was less than two weeks away. And the wedding was coming up just as quickly. The past couple of weeks devoted to study seemed to annoy her mothers and Dorian. There was much to be done and hours had been wasted spending time in libraries instead of boutiques and bridal shops. There would be no avoiding more shopping excursions, dress fittings, wedding planning, and whatever else they had planned.

"Well now that all the work is done let's take time to play." Dorian smiled. "Both of you have photo shoot in an hour. Then an interview with the Daily Prophet. After that we need buy just a few more things for Opening Week and pick up your dress robes."

"Vait. I have not had chance to spend time vith her all veek. She is going to be vith me today. Alone." He talk his family and friends firmly. His mother, Molly, Dorian and Ginny all just stared at him blankly then turned back to Hermione.

"Hermione I know you already told me that you want me to be your maid of honor, but who's going to be your Guardian for the Binding Ceremony?" Ginny asked her. All the men gave Viktor a knowing look when his demand was ignored. He sighed and looked over to Hermione who was trying to sound interested in what was being said to her, but failing miserably.

"Alright children let's go." Dorian said taking Hermione and Viktor by the arm, so he could lead them to the nearest Floo Gate.

"Fine. It seems ve have no choice. But all of this vill be done quickly. Hermione needs rest." He said pointedly at his bride. In turn she gave him a grateful smile for his understanding.

"Right, right. It will be done faster than you can blink. Promise." Dorian said innocently. Four and a half hours later that promise was proved false. Viktor was day dreaming. Yes, day dreaming was a good way to describe it. He and Hermione were on yet another shopping trip with Dorian. The two were currently inside a small shop specializing in hair potions leaving the young man sitting outside on a bench watching the people around him. It was not an unpleasant thing to do. After hours of practice every day off time was always welcomed. At home he was usually spending time talking to Hermione about everything and anything. It was not a bad thing by any means, but sometimes he just liked to be left with his thoughts. This was one of those times.

He had been watching a couple and their children across the street at a café. Three children were giggling madly at a story their father telling as their mother fed a baby sibling in her arms. It was strange to watch. Until now he knew all that was expected of him and his bride. Children were one of those expectations. However it never truly sank in that he was going to be a father until he watched the family. Would his children like the stories he had to tell? How many children would he end up having? Would he be a good father? Would he have a lot of sons? Would he have a daughter? What would they look like? Would they have his nose? (He hoped not) Would they love him? These questions and more hit him like a ton of bricks. Was he even ready for fatherhood?

Feeling suddenly anxious he stood to look in the window of the shop. Hermione was laughing at something Dorian was saying with flourishing hands. He had to smile to himself. She was at her most beautiful when she laughed or smiled out of pure untainted joy. After some of practices he would come home frustrated, tired, and impatient. Then she would just walk over to him and say "Welcome home" with that beautiful smile. With that simple greeting he could forget about the day and enjoy the rest of the evening. As he watched the young woman he would spend the rest of his life with he remembered all the little moments he had spent with her over that past couple of weeks.

She had made it a habit of coming to his practices at least three times a week. Each visit brought a lunch for him and snacks for the team. They would talk, plan, tease, and even argue on occasion. The visits helped him learn more about her which he felt he desperately needed to learn. After all he was going to spend the rest of his life with her; it would be good idea to get off to a good start. Hermione was never one to openly talk about herself unless prompted to do so. He had to watch her closely sometimes to figure her out. When she hummed quietly while she was reading that meant she easily understood everything. When she fidgeting a lot it usually meant she was struggling. It was almost like she couldn't sit still until she found an answer for her question.

That was an aspect of her personality that hadn't changed since he first met her back in school. Her endless pursuit of knowledge was always fascinating to him. Viktor was no dummy. He enjoyed a good book as much as the next person, but he would have much rather have be riding broom or spending time with his friends and teammates. His girl needed to learn the way most people needed to breathe. He did his best stay interested when she spoke about the newest thing she had read about, but it was difficult when most of the time he had no clue what she was talking about.

Even if her love for learning hadn't changed other things about her had. When he had met her for the first time he knew there was no way she would spend her time talking about his sport for very long. But now she was really putting forth an effort in bringing it up in regular conversation. He found it cute the way she would talk about a team only to find out she had gotten it mixed up with another. She would ask about different players only to find out the ones she was mentioning had either retired or died. When he lightly teased her about it she would get flustered and changed the subject. He was trying to get her on a broomstick of her own, but a fear of highs prevent that from happening. For now.

"Hey there handsome. Are you awake?" A familiar voice asked. At some point while he was going through his thoughts Viktor had closed his eyes. He opened them to look up at his beautiful girl. She was smiling down at him holding a vile that was filled with a pink potion. "Look what we found. It's a rare potion that's supposed to make your hair longer, shinier, and pink."

"Pink?"

"Yes, it will turn your hair pink." Hermione said with a giddy smile.

"Vhy do you need a potion that turns hair pink?"

"Oh the other day Fred put a chocolate spider in Ron's sandwich. Ron got angry, no surprise there, and started ranting on and on about how much he hated spiders." She sat next to him with a sigh. Viktor looked at her closely enough to notice the brief flash as pain on her face. "Of course, he has been acting angrier since Engagement Day." That last part was quiet, so he knew not to comment on it. Though he to had noticed the youngest Weasley son's behavior. The boy made it a point to be rude to the both of them. The only time he spoke to Hermione anymore was to yell or belittle her. It was seriously starting to piss him off. The only thing preventing him from beating the kid senseless was Hermione. She wanted to just leave it be saying it would better if Ron just vent. The red head would get over it eventually.

"So you getting back at Ron by turning his hair pink?" He asked with a glint of amusement in his eye.

"No. The potion is for Fred. After all it is his fault that Ron started his rant in the first place." Hermione smile evilly at the vile in her hand. "It lasts for three weeks."

"Remind me not to make you angry." Dorian said from behind her.

"Dorian please tell me that I can take Hermione home now." Viktor sighed as he stood up and stretched. "Ve have been out for far too long. I vant us to go home already."

"Well let me think. We did the photo shoot, interview, shopped, ate, shopped, picked up dress robes, shopped a little more, snacked, and plotted a small revenge." He smiled as he listed all the things they had done. "I think it is safe to say that you two are ready for Opening Week." The couple let out a rather loud sigh of relief. "Yes, thanks to yours truly both of you will look brilliant." He looked as proud as a peacock, however it was short lived and the older wizard's expression hardened. "Three of the International Couples have gotten married already."

It was true that events were moving quickly not only for Hermione and Viktor, but for the other couples as well. Edward and Yoko were married just a month after the Matches were announced. Hermione had seen the photos in the paper. Both looked at ease with each other. They were smiling and laughing. Yoko was in a white pink flowered kimono style dress robe that she designed herself. Edward stood clean cut in a black blue trimmed robe. The article detailed the wedding down to what key the band had the wedding march. Theirs was a warm and happy wizard wedding. Very different from the St. Paul and Verski wedding.

Apparently Irina had insisted on a full Muggle wedding. Ceremony and reception. They wore matching black tuxes. Michael looked sick while Irina looked disgusted. The details of their wedding were also reported. The words "cold" and "dull" were used frequently. In one of the photo you could see a dozen or so women crying. The caption below it said it was all the women who were in love Irina. Another photo showed a bunch of young men laughing. That caption explained it was all the men who wanted to laugh at France's playboy wizard.

Jason Smith and Isabella Montoya made it easy and eloped. When Viktor read that Hermione could have sworn she heard "Lucky bastard" come out of his mouth. When she looked over at him he just gave her an innocent smile.

"You two are going to be the last to get married. The other couples are getting married during Opening Week." Dorian told them.

"Dorian, why are you bringing this up?" Hermione asked knowing that something was going on that he was trying to tell them.

"You two are going to get more press than any of the other couples. During Opening Week you will be the center of attention. Crowds are going to gather around you like moths to a flame. That attention is going to carry over to your wedding. I heard that all of countries involved with the "Marriage Law" are sending at least two reporters to your wedding. Even countries outside of the Law are sending reporters."

"I fail to see vhy that matters." Viktor said mildly as he wrapped an arm around Hermione.

"Security is going to be tight, but I want warn you now. Some threats have been that seem primarily directed toward the two of you. Somebody or some bodies don't want you get married. They say they will hurt the two of you if you go through with this." Dorian admitted as he lead to couple to the café Viktor was observing a few minutes ago.

"Who's making the threats?" Hermione asked calmly. This news was far from surprising to her. She knew that there were many out in the world who did not like the idea of Viktor marrying her and vise versa. Still a few names came to mind instantly, though she didn't want to think ill of family.

"I'm having that looked into. I'm warning you now that you have to be extra careful in public. Those charms I gave you were made with the best protection spells I could get my hands on, but they are no substitute for the human touch."

"Ve vill be care Dorian." Viktor said in an even voice though both Hermione and Dorian noticed he sat closer to Hermione than he usually did.

"Good. Like I said I just wanted to warn you. Since I have we can move on to other subjects. Opening Week is just days away, so you won't be seeing much of me until First Practice." They paused to order some tea, but as soon as the waitress left to get their order Dorian started up again. "You both know where you have to be and what you need to be wearing for the Practice, so I see no real reason to review that. All that I ask is that you make sure you come together. All the other couples arrive separately. The women have to make sure they get their big entrances. If you arrive together than all the attention will be centered on you. They will ask questions about the season, your wedding, your feelings on the law, and your feeling about the other couples. They more the press talks to you the less they'll talk to the other wives. That means there less of a chance for those ally cats to make any comments about Hermione."

"What about the other players?" Hermione asked. Viktor laughed at the obvious concern on her face.

"I would not vorry about them if I vere you." He told them still laughing.

"Why?" They asked in perfect unison.

"For the last couple of veeks Hermione has been bringing snacks for them during practice. They vill do nothing but sing her praises."

"Oh, well than I guess that takes care of the last of my worries." The agent looked down at his watch and jumped up with a start. "Is that the time? Oh no. Sorry kids I have to run. See you at Practice." And with that he left.

"That…was sudden."

"He probably remembered he had a date vith his partner tonight." Viktor shrugged as their tea was set on the table.

"They should be getting their invitation today. Same with everybody else." Hermione told him absently as she mixed some cream and a lot of sugar into her cup.

"Remind me again how many people ve ended up inviting?" Viktor did not like being the center of attention with large crowds. He knew it was unavoidable at his own wedding, but that didn't mean he had to like.

"We sent 356 invitations for a total of 423 people." Hermione sighed. That's what you got when you invited both the Weasley and Krum clans. Plus there were all the friends, teammates, ministry officials, and press added in the mix.

"How much is this vedding costing me?" He asked without thinking. He never once brought up finances with Hermione. He had enough money to last six lifetimes. He always made it clear to Hermione that all she had to do was ask if she wanted something, though she rarely ever did. The witch was always careful about spending money. It was never his intention to make her worry about money, but it was clear by the look of shock and concern that it was what he had done.

"I know it's a lot of people, but…" Hermione quickly tried to reassure him.

"I did not mean it vas a bad thing to have all these people." He cut in quickly. She however continued.

"You really don't have to worry about it…"

"I am not vorried."

"Your parents are paying for all the dress robes and tuxes on your side of the family…"

"I know that. I did not mean I hated paying for all of this."

"Harry is paying for my side of the family..."

"He is a good man, but he does not need to do that. I can afford it."

"My parents are paying for the dress…"

"Please forget I say anything."

"All of your sponsors are chipping in to pay for the reception…"

"I should not have said anything."

"So there's no need for you to worry about it..."

"HERMIONE!" Viktor nearly shouted placing his hands firmly on her shoulders.

"Yes?" Her voice was as quiet as his was loud.

"Forget I said anything about money." He told her more gently.

"But…"

"Forget." He told her. Hermione nodded with a small smile. "Good. Now let's go." He took her by the hand and headed home. From a shadow just a couple of feet a way someone was watching. The person stood there for a few moments after the couple left before taking leave their self.

A/N: Please continue to give advice. I'm all ears. ^^ Until next time everybody.


	18. Truths

A/N: I didn't take as long as I thought to write this chapter. I think its one of the best yet. I hope you enjoy it. That to all the people who left all the encouraging reviews. I love you all and really hope you stick with me until the end. Alright on with the story!

Truths

Hermione used to love old Wild West movies when she was a child. The good guys were always good. The bad guys were sometimes good turned bad. There was always a beautiful lady to save. And in the end there was a ride off into the sun set. But her all time favorite part was the stare downs before the big gun fights. The good guy and bad guy would stare at each other with their hands on their pistols just waiting for the other to make the first move. The staring was not her favorite part. The thing she loved most about the movies was the tumbleweed. Out of nowhere while moment of intensity was at its peak tumbleweed would just roll out from nowhere. In her child's mind it was both a funny and awkward thing to see. It belonged yet it seemed so out of place. At the moment she felt like that tumbleweed.

Viktor was standing on one side of the room while Ron was at the other. Viktor and Hermione were eating lunch with the Weasley's to tell them where they needed to be during Opening Week. Hermione had left the room for a few minutes to chat with Ginny. She thought that it was alright to do since Arthur, Bill, and Harry were in the dinning room with Viktor and Ron. Poor thing had no idea how wrong she was. The tension had been so high that the three left without a word. When Hermione had returned she caught the tail end of sentence.

"…a whore. The marriage will be a sham."

"Who's a whore?" Hermione asked quickly before Viktor could make a move or say a word. Both of them looked at her before staring back at on another.

"Nobody Mione. Could you leave us alone for a few minutes? We need to talk man to man." Ron said trying to stand up a little straighter.

"I know this is about me. So you might as well say it to both of us Ron." She said quietly. Viktor just stood in his place. His patience was to its very limit. The only thing holding him back now was the fact that Hermione was in the room. "Ron you've been a jerk for the past couple of weeks and I've let it slide hoping you would get over your issues. But you continue to act as immature as ever. I was a reason and I want it now." Her voice was straining to be in control. Her entire body trembling with emotion.

"I don't have to give you a reason. You or Vicky." Ron spat.

There was a sickening crunch before she saw an explosion of blood. Viktor's fist had met Ron's nose.

"I have had enough of this." The Seeker pulled the boy to him by the neck of his t-shirt. "I could care less vhat you say to me. I can look the other vay vhen you make your rude gestures. I can even ignore you disrespectful comments about my team. But you drew the line at disrespecting Hermione!" He shouted shaking the boy with every sentence. By now the commotion had brought a whole crowd: all the Weasley boys, including newly arrived Charlie, their sister, parents, and Harry. Plus a few of the Order Members who were staying for lunch.

"What is going on? Viktor what are you doing to my son?" Molly screamed nearly charging towards the boys only to be held back by her husband.

"Molly this is between boys. Stay out of it." Arthur calmly said. He had raised six sons he knew when a fight had to happen. This was one of those times.

"Stay out of it? He's hurting our son!" She looked at Hermione. "Do something about this!" Hermione just shook her head. She was tired of trying to stop something that was bound to happen. She simply didn't have the energy to do it anymore. Everybody else looked just as exhausted with the whole situation.

Viktor had been ignoring Molly not once letting go of Ron's shirt. "Are you going to give Hermione and answer?" He asked loosening his grip just a little. The red head spit in his face. The Bulgarian let out a slow breath and started to drag younger man out of the house. There was a loud slam of a door and then silence.

"So should we follow them?" Fred asked scratching his head.

"No son, this is one we should stay out of." Arthur sighed shaking his head. "Hermione I think you should get some of your healing potions out and ready. Something tells me we're going to need them in a few minutes. The rest of you just…get washed up for lunch." Everyone did as they were told and all seemed normal if a little bit tense.

About fifteen minutes later Viktor came inside with a split lip and bruised knuckles. Ron followed looking like a walking paint pallet. His face was a colorful mix of reds, purples, and blues. His shirt was covered in dirt and grass. His pants were ripped and looking just as bad as the rest of him. It was obvious who the winner of the fight was.

"Viktor, you're bleeding." Hermione rushed over to heal his lip. She made it a point to ignore Ron, who was collapsed in a chair.

"It is nothing. I have had vorse." He reassured his girl. She smiled and put her wand to his lip. It was all better in a few seconds. "I think you should go talk Ron." He gave her a small kiss on the forehead. "If he gives you any problems just give me shout." He told her softly. The girl didn't do anything for a while. She just rubbed some ointment on her finance's hands. "He vill tell you vhat you vant." Hermione nodded and stood.

"Come on Ron. I'll patch you up in the other room." She pulled him by his arm to the living room where they could have some privacy. "Okay Ron tell me where it hurts." She said getting her wand ready.

"Everywhere. I think he might have broken some ribs." Ron moaned.

"Serves you right. He has been nothing but kind and patient and wonderful to this family and you treated him like…like…like he was a Malfoy."

"I just…didn't like seeing you with him is all." He flinched as she healed some of the deeper cuts.

"Why? We both know we can't be romantically involved. Why should you have a say in this?"

"It's not about us."

"What is it about Ron?"

"Well…It just should have been…"

"Should have been?"

"It should have been Harry!" He burst out. For a long while there was silence as Hermione absorbed these words.

"Harry?"

"Yes, Harry. He's been in love with you since forth year. We were supposed to go to Hogwarts together. Harry was going to ask you to be his girl. Than you two would have been a couple. After that Neville, Ginny, me and Luna could have all gone out on dates and stuff. That's how it was supposed to go. We were all supposed to be happy like that. We were finally going to have a normal year at school."

"I have no idea what you're talking about Ron Weasley. Harry is in love with Cho." She stopped her healing, so she could pay full attention to what her friend was saying.

"No, no he doesn't Mione. Cho was just a crush. You know, a passing fancy?" Ron felt old all of the sudden. He knew he shouldn't be talking about this. Not without Harry present, but there was no other choice. "Shortly after the Final Battle he told me everything. After the Triwizard Tournament he realized he loved you. The way you were so worried about him whenever he was competing made him so happy. He told me he never wanted to see you in pain." He ran a hand through his hair. "He was going to tell you his feelings, but than the law came up. It killed him to know he couldn't save you from it. It was even worse when he realized he couldn't be with you."

"Harry never said anything to me. He never acted differently." She said to herself.

"Wake up Mione! He was the first to try and get you out of this marriage. He's doing everything he can to make sure you have a wonderful wedding. He's putting aside his feelings so you can have a chance at being happy."

"Why?"

"I told you he never wanted to see you in pain." More silence. Hermione let some very quiet tears fall. Mostly they were for Harry. Once again he had to put his feelings aside for the sake of another. It wasn't fair that someone who did so much good for the world had to suffer so much pain. Some of the tears were for a future that the Golden Trio had wanted, but would never get. And the rest were for the anger she felt. Anger at herself for never noticing her friend's feelings.

"Listen we can't let Harry know that you told me all this. They weren't your feelings to confess. So when we step out of this room we are going to act like we simply talked things out. If Harry hasn't told me anything than he clearly doesn't want us to know about it. Nothing changes. I'm going to marry Viktor. You and Harry are going to Hogwarts after the wedding. And that's how life is going to be." She wiped her eyes and finished with the healing. Ron nodded meekly as he stood looking as docile as new born kitten. She had fixed her friend for the most part. All of the broken bones had been healed and the bruises were all much lighter than they had been before.

They were just about to leave the room when Hermione stopped and turned around to look her friend in the eye. "I know you're worried about Harry, but did you for one moment think about my feelings? It's been killing me watching you act the way you have. I thought you would just get over it and be the friend I have grown to love all these year." She stood on tip toes to whisper in his ear. The word seemed to do more magic on his person than any of her healing spells.

"Is that right?" He asked beginning to smile.

"Yes, but if you tell I swear I'll hex you from here to Avalon." She said trying to sound threatening, but failing by saying it with a smile.

"Fine. I'll keep it a secret." And for once Hermione knew he would keep his word.

The pair walked back to the kitchen where everyone was trying to act causal by sitting at the table or meandering outside. Both knew that they had been trying to listen, but everyone just thought it better to say nothing. Viktor was the only one who looked truly innocent. Hermione walked over to him so that she could sit on his lap. "How did it go?" He asked simply.

"Wonderfully. You'll see a difference right away. I promise." She gave him a kiss on the forehead. All was peaceful in the Burrow. Lunch was quiet, at least as quiet as you could get with the Weasley clan together. Ron talked to Hermione about some of the potions work he needed to get done by the end of summer. Once in a while he would look over at Viktor appraisingly, but never said anything. Nothing was really out of the ordinary until around dessert. Order members started arriving. More specifically Order male members. Snape, Kingsley, Moody joined everyone for sponge cake. Clearly something was going on.

"Alright, I guess we'd better do this then." Arthur said nodding to his oldest sons. On cue Bill and Charlie came up from behind Viktor so they could pick up by his armpits and carry him outside. The twins and Harry followed closely behind. The men made polite excuses then went to join the rest of the party. Ron remained the lone male in the room. Molly, Ginny, and Hermione were all just staring at him waiting for an explanation.

"It's a man thing." Was all he said and closed the door behind him.

"You know, I know what they're doing, but I have no desire to listen." Hermione told the other two while cutting herself another big slice of cake. Ginny started giggling and Molly simply rolled her eyes.

Meanwhile Viktor was facing "The Talk".

"Seeing as I am her adopted father I'll start this." Arthur said with a stone cold look in his eye. "Hermione is special to us. And worth far more than you will ever know."

"She's our little sister. Our best friend. Our student. Our daughter. And on many occasions our sanity." Harry's voice was even and chilling.

"Her life is worth far more than yours to us make no mistake boy." Alastor said with his magical eye looking Viktor up and down.

"If you hurt her in any way, and trust me we will know, you will wish for death." It was Bill turn to look threatening.

"Yeah, because if we find out you hurt our girl we will start by using one of our Silly Slow Slicing Knives to cut your balls off…" Fred pushed up to Viktor's left side.

"Than we will fry them up in the batter and make you eat them…" George mirrored his twin on the right.

"After which you will forced to ingest various potions that will turn your skin different colors, cause you to go bald, and shrink what remains of your manhood." Snape had become oddly protective of Hermione ever since the Final Battle, it might have something to do with the fact that she saved his life, but who knows.

"Once you've had enough of that you will be brought to the Dragon Reserve and will experience first hand what it's like to play with Horntail babies." Charlie said a little too cheerfully.

"And after you've gone through all that we will drag you kicking and screaming to the Ministry where we will use our connections to make sure you get thrown into Azkaban for life." Kingsley was the last of the adults to make their threats.

Viktor stood there knowing now was no that time to say anything. He stood in a circle of stone cold stares. After a while the men went inside one by one until the only ones left were Harry and Ron. The three stood there for a long while without a word. It was Harry who broke the silence.

"You know what will happen if you hurt Mione and they find out. You'll be lucky if they're the ones who catch you. We'll let you use your imagination about what happen if we got to you first." Ron nodded his agreement. "But threats aside we talked about it and thought you could use some 'Hermione Hints'." Harry said with a smile on his face.

"Hints?"

"Yeah, mate. We've known Hermione for years and after talking we decided that you need to know some things about her." Ron said.

"Like vhat?"

"Well first of all never try and get her to eat cheesecake. She hates it. I tried to get her to eat it a piece one day and she hexed me so badly I couldn't sit down for a week. And never think for one moment that you can ask her to wash dishes. It can get ugly…fast!" The Weasley boy said leaning on a wall grinning.

"Believe it or not she likes teddy bears. The cuter the better. She keeps it secret because she doesn't think it will help her keep up a mature image. Still she has a 'secret' collection hidden somewhere. If you looked hard enough I'm sure you could find it." Harry joined Ron in the wall.

"She claims her favorite color is red, but it's really violet."

"Never make a comment about how small her feet are."

"Don't mention her old cat Crookshanks. He died while attacking a Death Eater during the Final Battle."

"She loves to eat Mexican food. If you take her out for tacos one night she'll be putty in your hands."

"That's how we got her to help us on our recent potions work."

"She hates small dogs, but doesn't seem to have a problem with big ones."

"She has a favorite quill that she always carries with her. It's a silver thing with an eagle feather. Never ask to borrow it because the answer is always going to be no."

"Never get her a book as a present. It will only lead to a wonderful argument about how rude it is to assume that all she does with her time is read."

"And finally don't be shocked when you find her tattoo."

For the whole time Viktor had remained quiet, but the last statement did in fact shock him. "Vhat tattoo?" He asked looking at the pair.

"We all got one a few weeks after the Final Battle. It was just to take our minds off…well off of everything. I have a Snitch, Ron's got lion, and Hermione has hourglass. It's on her left hip." Harry clarified. "It symbolizes her Time Turner she used third year." The Boy-Who-Lived-Twice gave his fellow Seeker a hard pat on the back. "Hope all of that helps." Then he went back inside to see if there was any dessert left. And then there was two.

"You're no good enough for her." Ron told him bluntly.

"And here I thought you vere going to polite from now on." Viktor sighed running a hand trough his hair.

"I am being polite. Honesty is a type of politeness." Viktor just grunted. "I'm saying it because it's true. I don't think there is a man out there who could possibly deserve her. Do you have the slightest idea what she did for me and Harry? For the whole war effort? You should talk to her about it sometime. I'm going to be nice for her sake, but that doesn't mean I like it. She deserves enough happiness to last ten lifetimes and I don't think you can give her that."

"And vhat makes you think that." Viktor was getting the urge to use Ron as a punching bag again. Although he was pretty impressed by the fact that the young man was acting like an adult for once. He even sounded like one.

"You don't love her."

"How do you know that?"

"I just know. You don't love her. You care about her a lot, respect her, and you want her to be happy. But you won't be able to make her happy because you don't love her. She needs someone to love her. She will need that person even more when all of use got to Hogwarts and she ends up all alone." Viktor raised an eyebrow clearly thinking about all the family members who didn't go to school plus the Order Members. It was hard to believe she would be alone. "She will be alone. Even with Mum and Dad and all the brothers are here. She's going to feel alone. She'll need a special kind of love that you can't give her yet."

"Vait. You said yet."

Ron paused and then nodded, "Yeah, I did." Finally it was his turn to go inside leaving Viktor alone to process all that he had heard in those few minutes.

A/N: Well what did you think? Funny? Sucky? Strange? Cake? I love to hear from you so please make your thoughts known. See ya next time.


	19. Wives

Hello everyone! Are you having a good summer? I am. I know it's been a long time since my last update, but up until a month ago I was thinking about putting the story up for adoption. I wasn't sure where I was going with it, and I was getting no inspiration. But I held out and I was able to write the next three chapters! And I got a beta! Life is good. So I hope you are all ready for this because I'm going to be updating faster than every to make up for lost time. Now get ready!

Wives

"Oh dearie, you will take everyone's breath away."One of the women said as Hermione looked at herself in the mirror. It was first day of Opening Week and so far she felt it was far too much work. Her morning had started far too early when she had to use a Portkey to get to a small studio where she was to get ready for her big debut. An army of women was waiting for her as she fell onto the floor.

While she ate a little bit of toast witches worked on her hair. It was much easier than it had been in the past, but it was thick and very hard to curl, pull, and pin up into an elegant knot on the top of her hread. Still they managed to do the job, and assured the girl that a few spells would make sure every strand of hair would stay in place for the duration of the day. After that it was time to clean and shine her nails. Her make up consisted of light colors so as not to take away from her natural beauty. Although she wouldn't want to do all the work every day Hermione had to admit to that she felt pretty.

Finally after what seemed like forever she was able to put her dress on. The moment she laid eyes on it she knew it was easily going to be the most beautiful garment she owed to date. It was floor length in the back, but gradually got shorter until it was just above the knees in the front. There were no sleeves, but a delicate web of ribbons and beads on the shoulders kept the dress up. Her favorite part was the color. At the waist it started as a deep red and as the color spread over the dress it gradually got lighter and turned a blush pink at the edges. The whole thing was a work of art.

To complete the outfit she slipped on some strappy gold heels, a thin gold chain with a ruby drop pendent, and her engagement ring that had gone from silver to gold to match everything else. If one were to look at her with a passing glance they might think she was going to a ball rather than a Quidditch practice. She thanked the small army for all their help then went over to the Floo gate were Viktor was waiting on the other side.

As she stumbled out her eyes landed directly onto him. He was impossible to miss with way he looked. He was dressed in his formal uniform; it was only used for Opening Week and the World Cup ceremonies. It looked very much like his regular uniform only it had black trimming. His boots and gloves were black leather that had been shined to perfection along with the attached silver buckles. He had trimmed his hair and shaved a couple of day's worth of stubble off. He was handsome in a very wild and ruff sort of way. However the thing that stood out to her the most was his smile. A smile that was solely directed at her. It was an expression she had seen many times, but for the first time she realized it was meant just for her. Sure he smiled with his family and friends and the press, but those were different. His smile was filled with a soft kindness, humor, patience, and something else she couldn't put her finger on.

He walked over to her, so that he could take her hand and give it a soft kiss. "You should not look so beautiful. I vill not be able to practice because I vill too vorried the others are going to steal you avay." He told her playing with one of her curls. He was enchanted by her. She was too beautiful to be real, and too real to be imagined. She just smiled and pretended to smooth out his robes.

"Where is everybody anyway?" She asked looking around and noticing that Viktor was the only player in sight.

"They already vent ahead of us. Most of the guys' vanted to stay to see if you could bring any treats, but Coach made them go." He said rolling his eyes a little. "Levski vas almost in tears when he heard ve vere arriving separately."

Hermione laughed a little. "Than we should catch up with them, don't you think?" He nodded and walked through the doors. Dorian's voice echoed in her mind very clearly.

"Remember it is extremely rare for a wife to come onto the field with her husband. Those women like the spotlight solely on them, even if it is just for a moment. You are going to make a lot of enemies right on the spot, but you're also going to make it hard for them to attack you since you will be receiving so much media attention." Behind the doors were various flags from around Europe. Viktor picked Bulgaria's flag and in an instant they were lifted up into the air as if they were on some kind of invisible elevator.

They flew past stands of people, Quidditch posts, and other players. It was the single most exhilarating and terrifying experience she had ever had. All the European teams had a stadium and field to themselves. All the stadiums were interconnected through a series of moving stair cases like those at Hogwarts. They were weaving in and out of the web at a speed the girl didn't even want to think about.

Hermione looked over the crowd that was focusing all of its attention on her. The camera flashes were near blinding and she could hear at least six different pronunciations of her name being shouted out. She had been in the spotlight before, but this was something totally different. In all honesty it was a more than a bit overwhelming. After a good solid minute the crowd started to focus their attention back on the people they originally came for, the Quidditch players. Hermione picked out Viktor and blew him a kiss. He pretended to catch it like a Snitch and flew to join the rest of the team.

Hermione was able finally take a step back away from the edge of the box much to her relief. She turned around to face a dozen or so women staring at her. Others were pretending to talk to one another or partaking in drinks, but it was clear that they were aware of what was going on. The witch was a little unsure of what was about to happen, but she was ready. After all facing a bunch of hostile women wasn't nearly as dangerous as facing Death Eaters. It was just annoying.

A very fat woman finally approached her with a very critical look on her face. "So you finally decided to make an appearence." Hermione smiled sweetly. She knew that the press was going to be arriving in the Family Box soon, thanks to Dorian Tip #153, and she knew it would be wrong to look like she was getting in a fight when they entered armed with cameras and quills.

"Sorry about being late." She said with a voice that was as sweet as her expression. "Viktor just wouldn't let me go. He kept saying something about being too precious and beautiful to simply let go." She let a little blush rise up to her cheeks and smiled. She had been practicing the girlfriend in love act all week. There was a dull mummer around her and a few wistful expressions before the fat woman spoke again.

"That is a romantic notion. However in the future please try and remember ve vises try and arrive together. So as not to draw attention away from our husbands. This veek is about them after all."

Hermione mentally rolled her eyes not believing a word of what was coming out of the woman's mouth. "I will try and keep that in mind, but it's just so hard for me to stay way from Viktor even for a moment. All those long practices the team has are just torture for me. I want to die every time he has to leave my arms." She said in an almost overdramatic way. "But I'm still being rude. I haven't introduced myself. My name is Hermione, and I'll be Viktor's wife in a very short time."

"I am Desislava." Hermione didn't have to ask to know that she was the wife of Coach Borislav. As the wife of the Coach the woman had a certain unspoken power all the others. They were afraid to say anything about the fact that the woman's bob haircut made it look that she had no neck. They also did not point out the fact that her perfume was so strong it nearly suffocated the people around her. Such insulting comments could lead to they're husbands being benched. It happened before to a young promising player. His wife had let one little comment slip and the young man wasn't able to play in any of the remaining season's games. "Hermione I know this is a new vorld to you, but there are some rules that have to be followed."

"And what rules are those? Because I never found any book, scroll, pamphlet, or sticky note on the rules of being a Quidditch wife." Her sweet façade was slipping just a little and her arms were crossed over her chest."

"Some rules are best left unsaid." Desislava bit out. It was clear that the woman was not used to being challenged. That would make things difficult since Hermione wasn't used to being pushed around.

Fred and George instantly popped in her head. She knew exactly what they would say if they were with her at the moment. "And some rules are meant to be broken." Her brothers would be proud of the fact that she was being rebellious and problems for people who deserved it. Before Desislava had a chance to retort the press walked in the room ready to talk. All the women, with the exception of Hermione, stood a little taller and preened like peacocks.

Hermione walked back to the edge of the box to watch her man dazzle the crowed with his flying skills. Every time he did his signature move the crowed went wild. It had been a year since the last official game had been played. After that everybody concentrated on the war. Now that the war was over the fans were more than ready for some action. Hermione got caught up in the excitement as well. She couldn't help herself. She cheered for Viktor at the top of her lungs. A reporter would approach her from time to time, but she would tastefully say, "I'm here to watch my fiancée play the game he loves so much, not to think about my wedding." Balls were thrown, players showed off, fans cheered, and before she knew it the "First Practice" was over.

The only problems she had were when a few drinks were "accidently" spilled on her dress. Or when she "tripped" a couple of times. Of course she had some help with the tripping. Oh and there was that one time when she almost leaned too far over the edge. She was pretty sure that the fact that she felt a hand on her back or that one of the wives was right behind her had nothing to do with it.

When all was and done the team landed then headed to a separate box. There they would wait to meet up with their wives for more photos and questions. Before she could leave a small group of four wives cornered her wearing identical angry expressions. She guessed the middle woman was a part of Desislava's inner circle because she was standing in front of the others.

"I just thought that you should know that only…vhat is the English vord…sluts' vear that color red." The woman said pointing to the center color of her Hermione's beautiful dress.

"Oh, this color?" The sweet act was back on. "I'll be sure to let Coach know."

"Vhat do you mean?" Clearly the woman was caught off guard by Hermione's comment.

"Well it's the color of the team's uniforms. I'll tell Coach that you think the color, that has represented the Bulgarian team since day one, makes his players look like whorish women." Hermione's expression dropped its sweetness and turned very serious and slightly annoyed. "Before you try and insult me think before you speak. I'm sure that if you had taken the time to look at your men today you would have noticed what color they wear." She folded her arms over her chest. "Let me make this clear to all of you." She projected her voices so all could hear her. She had no reason to put on airs since the press had left the Family Box for the players. "I do not care what you think of me. I do not care how you treat me. I am not afraid nor am I intimidated by you. If you want to play these petty games, fine. But I will win." She smiled and left them behind her.

The expressions on their faces were priceless. She was giggling all the way to Viktor. He raised an eyebrow, "Vhat is so funny?" he asked taking her into his arms.

"Oh nothing at all." She gave him a completely innocent look. "You looked wonderful out there. The crowd loved you."

"There is only one person in the crowd I care about." He kissed her deeply no caring about the camera flashes around them. It was little moments like this that made Hermione's heart beat faster, and stop at the same time. "Now let us get the over vith." He said just soft enough for her to hear. She took a deep breath and smiled. They answered the questions about upcoming season, the other team members, the other teams, and just a few about the wedding. Viktor held his hand up, "That is all for now. There is a whole veek for more questions. Go talk to the other because ve have to meet up vith out families."

Hermione and Viktor walked out of the craziness and down to where everybody was waiting for them in yet another private box. As soon as they entered the room they were swept up in another flurry of questions.

"Viktor will you show me that trick you did?"

"Hermione you look so beautiful!"

"Was there any serious trouble?"

"Viktor I vish you vould be more careful in the air. You could have dropped Hermione!"

"I love that dress!"

The couple fielded questions as best as they could. At the same time it they were leading, or rather herding, everyone to the restaurant that they would have lunch and with the two families together plus Dorian it was quiet a challenge.

"Hermione how did the wives treat you?" Dorian asked once everyone was settled. Radko was sitting on the girl's lap while his older brother's arm was around the bride to be. Her gave the little boy a hug before answering the group.

"There was the more than one comment about the way I dressed. Then there were the comments about the way I was acting." Hermione smiled a little. "They seem under the impression that I'm trying to take all the media impression on purpose." She shook her head. "As far as I'm concerned they can have all the attention. All the camera flashes are going to blind me."

"So vhen you vere half falling out of the box vas just my imagination?" Kamen said with causally. Hermione raised an eyebrow at him who simply raised one of his own in reply.

"I tripped and fell. It was no big deal." She shrugged. Viktor gave her shoulder a little squeeze. When she glanced over at him he gave her a look told her they would talk more about it later when they got home. He always took her safety very seriously. When she asked him why he acted the way the way he did he simply said she had been put in enough danger in the past and if he could protect her from any further danger he would. If it were any of her relatives saying something like that she would be annoyed. However there was something very sweet about the way Viktor said it. She knew that he meant it and that filled her with happiness that was still very new to her.

"You know Hermione we have a lot of tricks you could use." Fred said looking over to his twin.

"That right. You name it and it's yours." George agreed.

"Fred. George." Molly snapped giving them a warning look. They didn't say anything more, but the smiles didn't totally disappear from their faces.

"I can deal with them on my own. But…just in case we'll talk later." She told them.

"Hermione!" Mira and Molly said at the same time. A lot of the guys simply laughed and the witch ignored the remark. The meal went well and everyone parted ways. Hermione and Viktor had to get ready for the cocktail party they had to attend. Over a dozen people had been eating and talking, but not once of them noticed they were being watched.

"Well it seems they're going through with this after all." The person mumbled to themselves. "I can't allow that." There was a soft chuckle. "I can't allow that at all."

A/N: Okay my goal is to have a new chapter up in one or two weeks. I have a beta who has promised to keep me on my toes. So I hope you guys are ready for all of this because this are about to move quickly from this point on.


	20. Fun

A/N: Okay so this chapter was supposed to be up almost three weeks ago, but when I read it I that that it sucked. I mean it was really bad. And I wouldn't want you guys to read a bad chapter or story so I rewrote the whole thing. It's almost 1000 words longer than the original. Alright on with the story.

Fun

Hermione was heading down the hall of Crystal Air to her room wondering if Viktor would like going out to eat out at a little café she had found. Just as she was about to push the door open she heard a voice soft and eerie right behind her. "Do not marry Viktor." Hermione whipped out her wand and turned around ready for a fight. She saw nobody, but that did not stop her from muttering spells to revel anyone invisible. Nothing appeared or gave any indication that anybody was there with her. There was a soft chuckle and what felt like a brush on her cheek. "Cute." Hermione punched at the air in hopes of hitting someone, anyone.

"Who are you? Where are?" She asked. Her breath was becoming uneven with each passing second. She remembered Dorian's warnings about the threatening letters.

"Shhhh. You don't need to fear me. I'm here to warn you." There was hot breath on her neck and strong arms around her waist. "Marry Viktor and you will get hurt." Hermione tried to wiggle away from the still grip to no avail.

"Why?"

"Because if I can't have you than nobody can."

"Who are you?"

"I'm watching you. Time is short. Don't marry him." Without warning there was a mouth firmly on her own. She tried to bite the unseen lips. She tried to scream. But the arms held and the unseen lips swallowed her scream. Her world went blank. The girl bolted upright in her bed and looked around. She was alone, it was night, she was in her bed, and she had been dreaming. Hermione tried to catch her breath, and wiped the sweat from her brow with a blanket. When her shaking stopped she carefully got out of bed and went to her balcony. The air was very cool, almost too cold; however it was helping her clear her head. The night sky was clear and all the stars were shining like little diamonds. Like the ones in her wedding ring.

The North Star hung in the sky like always. She did her little wish routine and was about to whisper the same thing she always did only to stop in mid wish. "Please, protect Viktor." Lately that was what life like she was always worried about Viktor's safety. She was starting to understand what it really meant to fall in love. It meant sticking beside the other and worry about another's safety before your own. With each passing day it was a promise she was becoming more comfortable making. She knew when the wedding day arrived there would be not hesitation in her heart. She looked and her engagement ring and smiled.

Hermione's thoughts drifted from love to the voice in her dream. She was pretty sure she had never heard it before, yet it still gave her the chills. Was it simply a dream? Or was it somebody trying to send her a message? Her thoughts were interrupted by a soft knock at her door. "Come in." She said walking to her bed to throw a robe on.

Viktor walked in with two cups in hand, "I could not sleep. So I vas vondering if you vould like to join in drinking some hot chocolate with me." He looked so bashful that Hermione could not help, but giggle.

"Sure. Come and join me over here." She sat on her bed and patted the place next to her. It was times like these the lioness truly appreciated just how good looking her man was. He was dressed in only in his pants, and as a healthy young woman she could feel a wave of heat rush through her and rest on her cheeks. Thank god for the dim nighttime light. "What are you doing up so late?" She asked taking a sip of her warm drink.

"I just could not seem to shut off my mind. Sleep vas very…vhat is the vord…elusive." He smiled studying her with very serious eyes. "I do have to say that I was more than a little shocked to find you awake at this hour." He brushed a finger against her cheek. "You are starting to look a little pale. You have not had much of a chance to sleep in lately." Hermione rested her own hand on his thoughtfully.

"Well it takes a lot of time to look as good as I have lately."

"I do not see vhy. You have alvays been beautiful." The wizard put both of their empty cups on the bedside stand next to the bed. "It is hard to improve on perfection." He pulled her into his arms and leaned on the headboard. Hermione rested her head on his chest and relaxed.

"Oh stop it."

"But it is true." He rested his chin on her head. He was happy that they could have moments like these. Opening Week made it hard show affection. Real affection. Everything had to be staged and camera ready. He lost count how many times he saw her angry and frustrated by the other wives. He knew things would get better very soon, but it was still hard to know that he couldn't really do anything to help her. At the same time he was proud to see she was able to handle those hags with such grace. He looked down at her face and noticed something. "Hermione, is there something bothering you? Is it the vives? Dorian?" He hesitated. "Me?"

She looked up, "Of course not! How could you possibly think that you are bothering me?"

"Vell I just thought it was a possibility." He chuckled at her reaction. At least he knew she cared. "But I can tell something is brothering you. Vhat is it? You know you can talk to me about anything." Hermione thought about telling him about her dream. After all he was always saying how he wanted to protect her, yet she was not able to. It was like the words were stuck in her throat and refused to come out. He had enough to worry about, besides he would likely tell the family and that would just lead to more headaches. For now she would just keep it to herself.

"I guess this has just been a stressful few days. I didn't really get a chance to rest after all my tests. Opening Week is really fast paced without many chances to relax." She told him quietly. When he didn't respond she looked up to see he had drifted off to sleep. "So much for being concerned." She giggled softly before closing her eyes and joining the Seeker in slumber. This time it was dreamless.

"Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!" A voice was shouting. Hermione opened up her eyes and looked around. "You two are late! Late! Late!" It took less than a second for her to register that Dorian was in her bedroom looking very annoyed. And the sun was hanging high in the sky outside her window. "Rise and shine sleeping beauties!"

"Vhat's going on?" Viktor sat up causing Hermione to roll completely off of him. "Dorian? How did you get into here?" He asked only half awake.

"You have me a key. And do you two have any idea what time it is? You've missed an interview, photo shoot, and a whole lot of other things." His hands were on his hips and the girl was pretty sure that veins were starting to appear on his forehead.

"So vhat? Ve vere exhausted and slept in. So vhat if ve missed a few things?" He said shrugging and fell back again.

"You two are the only ones who didn't make an appearance on the Bulgarian team. What's a team without it's star?"

"Umm…a team without a star?" Hermione ventured.

"This is no joking matter." He almost yelled. Now the manager's face was starting to turn red. "You two have to get ready now! There are a million things to do until the cocktail party tonight!" The couple groaned and made not effort to move.

"Another party? Really this is becoming too much. They're all the same anyway."

"But ve have to do it. So we'll just take the day off until the party." Viktor said pulling Hermione closer. Dorian looked like he was about to kill someone.

"You think you can just take a day in OPENING WEEK off?" Dorian said through clenched teeth.

"Vhy not? Ve have been getting more attention than any of the others. If ve are not there than the other vill get attention and the vives vill leave Hermione alone for the party tonight." Viktor said logically. Dorian's mouth opened and closed then he looked to Hermione who smiled. The battle was won.

"Fine. But you to promise you will arrive on time and dressed to the nines." The manager left in a huff giving the couple some quiet moments together.

"You know we're going to pay for this later?" The girl said not all that concerned.

"Probably, but I do not care. I get you for almost the entire day. Vhat do you vant to do?" He looked down at her and she looked up to meet his eyes. A heartbeat passed and they were kissing. It was as passionate as a kiss could get. Tongues touched, teeth nibbled, lips bruised, and breath was lost. Viktor pulled Hermione as close as he possibly could with one arm to deepen this kiss. His free hand ran up and down her body so he could feel every curve of her body. Hermione's arms were wrapped around his neck and it didn't seem like she was going to let go anytime soon. Viktor's free hand slipped the robe and nightgown off her shoulders. He broke the kiss only to lay her down on the bed and look down at her. Her face was flush, her lips were red, and her chest was rising up and down. In short she looked delectable.

She gave him a confused look, "Is something wrong?"

"Nothing. You just look too amazing to be real." He told her as he started to kiss the line of her jaw. "You have no idea how much I have vanted to do this." He nibbled her ear gently. "Sometimes I have to go flying around at night to keep myself from coming into your room and ravaging you." He kissed down her neck and sucked on the place just above her collar bone. She whimpered softly when she felt his lips on her skin. It was music to his ears. He continued to kiss and suck her neck and one hand drifted to her chest where he gave on her right breast a light squeeze. This time she moaned deeply. Her hand drifted down and was about to make contact with the growing tent in his pants when the door burst open. Dorian froze and started at the couple were just as still and staring.

"I just wanted to let you know that I left both of your clothes in Viktor's room." He shut the door and left faster than either had ever seen him leave.

"Vell that vas awkvard." He said falling to the side of his still slightly frozen fiancée.

"Yeah…" Was all that she managed to say. They both looked at each other stand started to laugh. "I guess we know who to get Dorian to leave when we want to." Hermione laughed.

"Ve vill have to keep that in mind for future." He got off the bed and stretched out a little bit. Although he was more than a little disappointed that they got interrupted, again, he was glad to know that desire was mutual thing. "I vill meet you downstairs alright?" He left her to get ready for the day. Hermione smiled before getting dressed for what was promising to be a very interesting.

Since it was the third day of the Opening Week Hermione was well set into a routine. After all life during Opening Week seem like just one horrid parade of endless parties, interviews, photo shoots, and bullying. Everyday was the same as the last even if it was different. She would wake up, and go get ready. The hair and dressing would take time, and than she would go meet Viktor for some kind of interview with the team, or just the two of them. They would take photo sign autographs for the odd person, and then usually it was time for lunch. After lunch she would go and get changed in a different outfit. They she would once again meet up with Viktor and get do a photo shoot or yet another interview. Last was a cocktail party, dance, or social of some kind social where she would met more people than she could keep track of. She and Viktor would go to Crystal Air too tired to talk. They would just go to bed and rest for the next day.

The half day off would be a true blessing. The young woman looked herself over in the mirror with a smile then she went to meet up with the man who was becoming a big part of not only her life, but her heart as well. She nearly skipped down the stairs and crashed right into Viktor. Instead of falling over her picked her up like a princess and spun around in circles. She laughed, "Stop! We're going to fall over!" He stopped and set her down.

"Ve should go to town and find something to eat." Her took her hand and led the way. The day was peaceful to say the least. They ate, shopped a little, took a nap back at Crystal Air, and played a game of chess (Hermione lost.). But as all good things do the day came to an end it was time to get ready for the evening's party. Hermione put on the blue cocktail dress with some matching heels. Since time was short she simply brushed her hair and pinned it back with some burettes. She smiled when she met Viktor in front of the Floo.

"Do we really have to go?" Her asked half serious.

"Vell ve could ditch, but I have a feel Dorian vould come after our blood if ve did." He said fully serious.

"Right, than let's go."

She was standing in the shadows of the cocktail party. Viktor was talking with Coach Borislav about some kind of play or something to that nature. The women were now giving Hermione the silent treatment which was perfectly fine with her since it meant that some peace and quiet. Still with all the players talking with one another, and her man not by her side she was feeling more than a little lonely. The last couple of days had their fun moments. The bullying had not stopped after the first day. The young witch felt like she was the man character of a high school drama or something. The women were really petty. Questionable potions in her drinks, stains on her dresses, disappearing stairs, moving carpets were the physical parts. She retaliated by using WWW products. Carney Creams, fake wands. She also used good old fashioned Muggle pranks: woopie cushions, itching powder, salt in drinks, and thumbtacks on chairs. It was small battle that Hermione knew she was winning. Viktor being the man he was offered his help, but his fiancée just smiled and told him to kindly stay out of it. This was her fight, and in all honestly "it's the only amusing thing I have to do."

But now it was the end of the third day and even pranking was starting to loose it's luster. She decided to take the opportunity to use the powder room. The young woman looked in the mirror and sighed, "You can get through this Hermione. Just a few more days and then it'll be over."

A woman that Hermione had never seen before approached her, as she touching up her make up, with what seemed like a genuine smile "You know talking to yourself is the first sign of insanity." She said with very clear British accent. The woman was tall and straight. She had the stately walk of a mature woman. She was in her late twenties with beautiful honey blond hair and bright green eyes that were as bright as the leaves in a forest. There was something about her whole aura made Hermione let her guard down a little.

"Trust me I've seen real crazy. Giving yourself a little pep talk in the mirror is far from insanity." She said still ever so cautious.

"I've heard that you've been making things interesting this week. Lev has kept me well informed." The new woman said with a smile. "And I must say though I whole heartedly agree with what you're doing I do think that you can do a little better."

"Better? And when you say Lev do you mean Lev Zograf? The Keeper of the Bulgarian National Quidditch Team? How do you know him?" Hermione asked completely confused.

"Oh, I forgot to introduce myself." She stuck out a hand and smiled. "Christy Zograf, Muggle extraordinaire. Lev is my husband." Hermione took the hand and shook it while trying to let the words sink in and make sense of the words. Her mouth opened and close making her look like a fish out of water.

"Oh, well that explains a why I haven't seen you at the stadiums." The brunette said quietly. There were a million spells to prevent Muggles from entering the stadiums and practice fields. "But why haven't I seen you at any of the parties so far?" That was a confusing part.

"Oh I don't attend these things if I can help it. Lev and I have a son, Donald, and I don't like to leave him a lot since he's only a year old." She explained sitting down on the counter. Still...you must know something about the game right? I'm sure Lev talks about it all the time. Viktor does."

"Oh I know how to play the game, which teams have the best players, the history, and just about everything else. After all it is the second love of my husband's life." Christy was smiling as she talked, but there was a hint of sadness on her face. "I've read books, and watched what I can on Omnioculars." She shrugged like it was easy to deal with. "I'm trying to teach him about football although since there is no flying involved he gets bored with it easily."

"I will never understand the fascination with flying." Hermione shook her head, "Anyway…what did you mean by I could do better?"

"I mean with the revenge pranks, of course."

"Oh? Something tells me you have experience in this field."

"Before you there was me: a full Muggle marrying one of the most famous Keepers of our time. I can tell you that I had more than a few drinks spilled on me. I was treated very badly because they thought that since I had no magic I couldn't fight back." Christy spilled the contents of her purse out on the counter she was still sitting on. "Well they were very wrong. I'm going to teach you a thing or two that should help you get by the next few days." She held up a bottle little suddenly looking like Fred and George when they were cooking up a scheme.

"Tabasco Sauce?"

"Yes. Since its not a magical potion its easy to slip into drinks. Use the extra spicy if you really want to get a laugh." She handed Hermione the bottle just to pick up something new.

"Peanuts?"

"Oh those are for Desislava. She's allergic to them. Not deathly so, but enough that she carries an allergy potion with her."

"Than what's the point?" Hermione asked more than a bit confused.

"Well the potion will turn her lips a bright blue for the next week." Christy shrugged as it was an everyday occurrence. Hermione looked at the peanuts with newfound appreciation.

"That's all I could fit in my purse today, but don't worry. There will more chances to get back at those nasty women." She smiled tucking the new found tricks Hermione's own bag. "It's always better to have a partner in crime don't you think?" The Hermione before the war would have been almost offended that someone would think she would want to pull pranks on other people. Hermione of now knew that life was short and unexpected. And if you did not take the chance to have a little fun there was no guarantee that you would get another.

"You know I think that this is the start of a beautiful friendship." The younger woman said with a return smile. The two of walked out of the powder room and went to get some drinks. The two of them together did not go unnoticed by anyone. The press had not seen Hermione become close any of the wives until now so it was an exciting moment. And you could be sure that every single woman of the Bulgarian team had a certain feeling of dread in their hearts. Lev and Viktor walked up to the ladies with smiles.

"Vell it vould seem the ladies have met." Lev said wrapping an arm around Christy's shoulders. "And here I vas planning on being a gentlemen and introducing you." The Keeper said with a fake frown. Christy just rolled her eyes.

"That's a lie. You know that you completely forgot about introducing us."

"My dear, I'm vounded. That you vould have such little faith of in me is almost more than I can stand." He clenched his hand to his heart.

"Oh stop being such a goof." She said swatting her husband over the head. Hermione laughed at their antics. It was really easy to tell that they had a loving marriage. The affection between them was clear as day. Hermione dared to glance over at Viktor out of the corner of her eye. Would they have that kind of marriage? Even though it was arranged? What would do if she knew that Viktor was thinking the exact same thing?"

"Vhy don't ve leave now and hit the town?" Lev suggested. His wife nodded and looked at the young couple for confirmation.

"That's a wonderful idea!" "Ve should go now!" They said at the exact same time. The two couples left the party, and enjoyed the rest of the night sitting at a tavern exchanging stories and jokes. It was the best night any of them had had since the star of Opening Week. When the time came to say good bye Hermione was smiling all the way home.

"So vhat did you think of today?" Viktor asked her as they lay in her bed.

"It was…fun!"

A/N: Okay that's it for this chapter. I look forward to hearing from you guys, so please review and tell me what you think. Until next time!


	21. Questions

Alright everybody here it is! A big chapter just for you guys. I hope you like it because I think it's one of my best yet. Thank you Puck'slastlove for all your help! Alright what are you guys waiting for? Read read read!

Questions

"Ouch!" Hermione whimpered as a needle pricked her.

"Hermione have you been eating? Dear you look like a walking stick." Molly observed to her right.

"Of course I've been…Ouch!" Another pin pricked her this time on her stomach.

"Hermione be a dear and turn around in a slow circle." Madam Lori said biting one end of her glasses.

"Ah!" Hermione tripped over the too long train of the dress as she turned in a circle.

"Mione do I really have to be here? I mean why can't I just wear the same thing to the ceremony and reception?" Ginny complained. Her dress was a beautiful strapless rose red that went just above her knees. Tiny golden flowers were stitched everywhere giving the garment a delicate look.

"Yes, Gin you have to…ouch!" If one more pin pricked her she was going to hex the assistant who was working on the dress. Hermione was standing, well spinning now, in a very large fitting room with both mothers, her sister, Dorian, Madam Lori, one of her assistants, Luna Lovegood, and Hannah Abbot. Hannah and Luna's Muggle dresses, which were very much like Ginny's, were already finished. Same style and cut, but they were opposite colors. Gold with red flowers. All of the robes and dresses were hanging along the wall ready and waiting for the big day. The only thing that wasn't finished was Hermione's Muggle wedding dress.

The young woman sighed and looked at herself in the mirror. The room was moving little after all the circles she did. Still she could see the dress clearly. The wedding dress was still a work in progress, but you could already tell it was going to be beautiful. Despite wearing a beautiful half made dress, being surrounded by people who loved her, and getting ready for the biggest day of her life Hermione was anything but happy.

The last days of Opening Week for Hermione and Viktor were good. It was like the kiss first Dorian first caught them in opened the flood gates. They couldn't seem to stop kissing now. Viktor out drag her to the side and give her a quick peck. Or they would break away from whatever and find a place to snog for a while. It was wonderful, but seemed like they were always getting interrupted and caught. It was more than a little bit exciting if she was honest with herself. The moments were so random and surprising that they always seemed to make her heart beat faster. The young woman wished that she was having one now rather than standing in front of a mirror. The morning she had accidentally slept in late and wasn't able to say good morning to Viktor and give him a kiss before he left for practice.

"Hermione" "Hermione" "Hermione" "Hermione" They were all talking to her. Asking questions, making judgments, making complaints, and driving her absolutely crazy. This was not the first time she seemed to be smothered. She had yet another meeting with Iris the day before and which had been very similar to this fitting. Everybody was talking to her though they didn't really seem to be listening. The whole wedding was becoming the biggest headache she had since the end of the war. She knew a lot of brides felt overwhelmed when the big day drew closer, but still it was all just becoming too much for her to handle.

"Hermione tomorrow you have the charity auction. You know the one benefitting the war orphans." Dorian reminded her.

"I thought that was next week!" She said glancing over at Dorian before stepping out of the half made dress with some help by the needle-welding assistant. She went over to a little changing room where she could put some clothes on with some privacy and still talk to everone. The exhaustion in her voice was obvious, too bad for her that nobody was really paying attention. "I've been to four this week so far isn't that enough?" She was being spread thin. At the charity events she was usually the only wife to show up. Apparently they weren't a big deal enough for the others, and Christy was stuck at home since her son had caught a rather nasty cold. The bride threw on a pair of faded jeans and a woman sized Bulgarian team jersey.

Hermione stepped out of the changing room and gave Dorian a pleading look. "Dorian please, I can't do another one. This is too much! The wedding is right around the corner and I need this little thing called rest. I'm not sure if you've ever heard of it but it's essential to living and staying sane." Hermione sat on a couch next to Luna and Ginny on her other side sitting in a chair.

"I know you feel like it's a bit much, but I promise this will be the second to last thing planned for the week. And I made sure there was only one photo shoot, one interview, and one fashion planned for next week." The manager said handing the girl a cup of tea. He then turned to Molly and Mari and Lori to talk about something about the dress.

"Hermione you know that I am very happy to be a part of your wedding right?" Luna said in her dreamy voice. The bride to be nodded her head wondering what was about to follow that sentence. With Luna you could never fully be sure. Still Hermione was honestly glad that she had become friends with the younger girl. She was a bit odd, but it was a good kind of odd that had grown on the lioness. "To show my thanks I got you this." The blond held up a bracelet with a blue rose charm on it. Hermione took the gift with a smile.

"Thank you Luna. That was thoughtful of you." She said with a deep sincerity.

Ginny took the charm in hand and examined it closely. "Why did you give her this? Gifts are supposed be given on the day of the wedding, not before Luna."

"It Muggle tradition. The bride needs to wear something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue. If I wear this it will be both new and blue." Hannah and Ginny looked at Luna who smiled just a little.

"I wanted to do research on Muggle weddings so that I could be of more help." She then began to explain Muggle traditions to the other two, as Hermione drifted off in thought. She was starting to think of ways to somehow escape and sneak away in time to see Viktor while he was still on lunch. She had not been able to do so and it was starting to upset her. Lunches were what she looked forward when she had hard mornings. This was one of those mornings. Well now it was one of those afternoons. Even if she left now she would only just make it time to have a few minutes with Viktor. The mothers and Dorian finished talking to Madam Lori about what Hermione had no idea, but at the moment she didn't really care.

"Hermione what did Viktor say about the fitting the boys had yesterday?" Mari asked.

"I really don't know. I was pretty much asleep when he came home and got into bed. And he woke up early this morning before I had a chance to even say good morning." Hermione said absently. She had no real desire to know how the boys fitting went. As long as it happened and she didn't have to deal with it. Viktor was really being true to his word when he promised that he would deal with all the things on the men's side of the planning. And when he had the time he helped her as much as possible with the rest of the wedding.

"Hermione…how do you know vhen Viktor vent to and left the bed?" Mari asked slowly looking up from her cup.

"Hello? They live together. They're young. They're obviously shagging." The red head girl said with a small wink to her best friend. There was dead silence in the room. Hermione stood frozen in pure horror as she felt all eyes stare at her in shock or admiration. Suddenly the room was filled with more commotion than she cared for.

"Hermione I thought that you would save yourself for the honeymoon!" Molly said.

"We haven't…" She attempted to protest.

"Vell I guess it is not too bad. You do have children soon." Mari was smiling. Grandchilden.

"Will you please stop…"

"Are you pregnant? How far along are you? We might have to make the dress a little bigger for the wedding." Madam Lori was eyeing Hermione's stomach carefully. Hannah was a bright pink and staring very hard at her lap. And Luna just looked amused.

"I swear I'm not…"

"Now ladies it really isn't something to fuss over. Love can often take over them moment. I remember this one time when me a Jacob had this romantic night out…"

"WILL EVERYONE PLEASE JUST SHUT UP!" Hermione stood up suddenly and shouted at the top of her lungs. "I can't keep doing this." First she looked at Madam Lori. "One more fitting after this. And it had better take less than an hour." The mothers were next. "I love how you two are trying to help with the wedding. But you seem to have forgotten that this is something being forced upon me and Viktor. Just being married is going to make my dreams and goals in life much harder to achieve. Children are not going to help things get any easier, so can you see how being reminded of those future children might be more than a little upsetting to me." Ginny was the next victim of Hermione's minor meltdown. "Ginny…just shut up. Please. Sometimes the things that come out of your mouth are just too much."

"Hermione I know you're under a great deal of pressure…" Dorian tried to say, but Hermione just ended up rounding on him instead.

"And you. You were one of my few allies in the beginning, and now I wonder if you may be trying to kill me. You plan all these events I have to attend without even asking me first. NO MORE! I want you to cancel all of ones you have planned from now until I get back from my honeymoon. And then you have to ask me before you promise that I'll be anywhere." The girl grabbed a light jacket she had worn and without saying anything else she apparated away from the chaos around her. She ended up in front of a nice white door with a welcome sign. She knocked loudly and waited for an answer.

The person who answered took one look at the girl and frowned. "Something tells me you're not here to talk to my husband." Christy said leaning on the door frame. Hermione shook her head.

"I need to get smashed. And quickly. Do you know anywhere I could do that?"

"Lev! After you're done with lunch call my mum and tell ask her to watch Donald I need to go out today. I probably won't be home until late." Before her husband could say anything Christy had her arm around Hermione's shoulders and was walking briskly down the street. "Come on. My brother owns a pub just a little ways away from here. We can go there eat some chocolate, drink some liquor, and you can tell big sister Christy what's going on."

They entered the Bottom Bottle Pub and sat down. A taller very handsome male version of Christy walked up to the table with a smile on his face. "Well if it isn't my elusive little sister. What can I get you Chris?" He asked.

"Two shots of whiskey, Eric, and bring the bottle." She said with a smile.

"Alright. I'll be right back." Eric walked off quickly to get the requested drinks. Christy reached across the table and put her hand on top of Hermione's.

"What happened to you girl?" She asked quietly.

"Christy it was awful! Needles kept pricking me. They kept asking me questions. I didn't get to see Viktor at all today. I got a little dizzy. And I yelled at everybody." All the words came gushing out at once .

"Okay…" Christy wasn't sure if she should ask more or not. Thankfully Eric came with to shot glasses and a bottle of whiskey. "Thanks." Christy said to her brother. "Okay so you yelled at everybody. Don't worry about it much. I'm sure it they deserved it." She put a full shot glass in Hermione's hand. "You're under a lot of pressure right now, and you're feeling a bit over whelmed. All brides feel like that at some point."

Hermione stared at the glass before downing its contents in one go. "Yeah, but this is becoming way too much." She poured herself another glass and downed that one go. "I mean they just don't seem to get it. Mum and Mama talk about the wedding and grandkids. It kind of hurts. They don't even care about mine and Viktor's fate as long as they get babies in the end." Her words were laced with bitterness.

Christy stared laughing as she finished the last of her second glass. "Hermione I hate to tell you this, but a good ninety-seven percent of mothers are like that. You should have seen my own mother when I got married. She was practically naming our unborn children before Lev and I even announced our engagement. And they weren't even very good names." She said filling the glasses again. "What has Viktor done about everything?" She asked. Hermione couldn't help but smile a little thinking about her fiancé.

"He's been wonderful. The other day when I was stressing over what would be served at the reception he took all the menus and threw them away. Than he helped me make a whole new one. It was actually kind of fun. And he's handled everything on the men's side of the wedding. I can't help, but feel a little guilty about it. I know he has the first game to worry about. I doubt the wedding helps at all."

"Don't worry about it. In fact just sit back and count yourself lucky that he does that. Lev thought it was enough to show up in a clean shirt and help eat the cake." Christy's mouth curved into a frown.

"Really? That's it?"

"Really. To this day I hang it over his head whenever we get into big fights." Christy waved Eric over. He came with a smile, "Eric we're going to need some chips, more drinks, and oh anything with chocolate."

"And how exactly are you pay for this my dear little sister?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Do you remember that one time you brought that American girl home when mum and dad were on holiday? It would be quiet shocking for them to find out what you two did in the kitchen."

"Chris that was ages ago."

"And their bedroom."

"Chris…"

"Or the backyard."

Eric crossed his arms over his chest and glared at his little sister. "This is blackmail."

Christy smiled sweetly, "I call it a sister's purgative." They stared at each other for a long moment before Eric sighed and scratched his head.

"Chocolate?"

"Chocolate!" Christy smiled as her brother walked away. "You know I love my brother dearly, but ordering him around like that never gets old." The older woman filled both glasses to the top and raised her own in a toast. "Here is to life's challenges. May we find the strength to get past them." Hermione raised her glass in turn.

"And to family. May all of our loved ones continue to be happy and healthy despite how much they annoy us." They tapped the glasses together and started talking about other things. The afternoon came and went. They finished off all the food that was brought to them and another bottle of whiskey. It was late into the evening when Valko and Kamen found Hermione and Christy laughing they're butts off.

"And then he says 'That's right. A tuna fish.'" Christy finished saying with laughter. Hermione dissolved into uncontrollable giggles.

"A tuna fish! Oh my god…fish!" Hermione was struggling to breathe. The bothers looked at one another more than a little worried before approaching the young witch.

"Hermione. I think it is time for us to take you home." Valko said gently. Hermione looked at him and launched herself toward him. She enveloped him in a tight hug and snuggled her head into his chest.

"Viktor! I can't believe you're here! How did you find me?" She said softly though her speech did have a slight slur to it. Kamen came to his brother's rescue quickly. He gently pried his almost sister in-law from the bewildered man and helped keep her steady. Eric came over quickly with the protective eye of a bother.

"Excuse me? Remove your hands from that girl right now, please." He said sizing the brother's up. He wasn't about to let strangers bother or take advantage of anyone in his pub.

"You do not need to vorry. Ve are family." Kamen said struggling to keep the swaying half-awake Hermione from falling over.

"Yeah? Well until you can prove it I can't let you touch or take that girl anywhere. So let her get back in the chair and leave." The Krum bothers looked at one another. Their mother had only told them to find Hermione and make sure she got back to Crystal Air safely. They hadn't even thought of the possibility that they might need to prove they knew her. Thankfully at that moment Lev came in to save them both from answering a lot of difficult questions.

"Eric. Vhere is my silly vife?" He asked. The Qudditch player was still in his practice clothes meaning he came straight from the training field to find Christy. "She said she vould be out for the day, but she has not come home yet." He looked down at his wife and sighed. "How could you let her get this like this?" He lifted her up bridal style and glared at his brother in-law. Eric just shrugged.

"She blackmailed me. Do you know these two guys?" He asked pointing toward the brothers.

"Those are Viktor's brothers. They are going to be Hermione's," Lev tried to point to the brothers and hold onto his wife at the same time. "Brothers too pretty soon. Their mother probably sent them to get her vhile Viktor finished up with practice. He vas a late so he had to do a lot of laps to make up for it." That was good enough for Eric. He went back behind the bar to help the new batch of people who came in. Lev nodded his goodnight and carried Christy outside the door. Hermione looked up at Kamen and smiled.

"Viktor! Why are you here silly? And what did you do to your hair?" She asked now clinging to Kamen. Both of the brothers smiled a little at the girl's antics and together they got out of the pub and to Crystal Air without much trouble. They were trying to trying to get Hermione to let go of Kamen when Viktor came out of the fireplace only to stop and stare at the slightly awkward scene before him. Hermione was holding very tightly on to Kamen and Valko was gently trying to pull her off.

"No no no no no!" The girl was yelling holding on for dear life. "Don't take me from Viktor."

"Hermione this is not Viktor."

"Valko, she is hurting me."

"Do I even vant to know vhat is going on?" Viktor asked. He wasn't in the best of moods. First he slept in and was the last to arrive to practice. And to make it worse Hermione hadn't been awake like usual. For the first time in a while she had slept in without telling him to have a good practice. Than he couldn't seem to concentrate on catching what was thrown his way. At lunch he waited and waited for Hermione to show up, but he didn't remember she had a fitting until after he was being yelled at by the Coach about arriving to practice on time. The rest of the practice just went downhill from down there. He had to do more laps than anyone else after practice and he lost his favorite pair of black gloves at some point. All in all a very bad day. And to top it off he arrived home to see the girl he was falling in love with clinging to his very own brother.

"Viktor is not vhat it looks like." Kamen said. Hermione's whipped around to look at her betrothed and immediately tackled him. She reeked of alchole and she was acting very different from normal so it didn't take Viktor any time to figure out his girl was drunk. Valko, being an opportunist, threw Viktor a small vial. It was the first thing that he caught with ease all day.

"It is a Sobering Up Potion. She vill be back to normal in seconds, but it von't help vith the hangover she vill have in the morning." Both brother's waved their good-byes and made a very quick escape. Viktor looked at the vial and debated how he was going get Hermione the potion. The logical solution was to hand it to her explaining what it was. However he wasn't the world's most logical person. That title belonged to the woman in his arms. The Seeker opened the bottle and poured its contents in his own mouth. Steadying Hermione with one arm and raising her chin giving her the potion via kiss. It worked in seconds just like Valko said. Her grip loosened, she stood up straighter, and her eyes cleared. It took a moment for her to take in her surroundings, but other than that she seemed perfectly fine.

"Welcome home." She said quietly wrapping her arms around him once again. "How was your day?" Hermione really didn't want to know how she got back home or what she did in the time she spent with Christy at the pub. None of that really matter now. No, all she wanted to do was be held by Viktor and forget about the entire day.

"It vas horrible." He told her while walking them both over to the couch. He sat down and settled Hermione on his lap. The soft glow of the moonlight through the windows behind her gave the girl an almost heavenly look. "I learned something today though." His hand played with a loose strand of her hair.

"And what is that?"

"I learned it is very hard to have a good day vithout seeing your smile first thing in the morning." A smile appeared on Hermione's lips and in her eyes at this response. "How vas the dress fitting?" He asked smiling back. Hermione's smile slipped and she sighed into his shoulder. Rather than push her for an answer he just pulled her close. Time passed like way for a while in silence. They were both lost in thought neither really wanting to talk about their own day, yet both wanting to ask the other questions.

"Tomorrow I thought maybe I would take Radko to see you at practice. He begs me to take him every time I go over to visit. We can have a picnic. And we'll watch you guys. Maybe you can let him fly with you." She said her head still resting on his shoulder.

"That sounds like a good idea."

"I yelled at our mothers, Dorian, Madam Lori, and Ginny today." Hermione admitted looking up to see what his reaction would be. Viktor just raised an eyebrow. "Needles. Grandkids. Shagging." She flopped against him with no further explanation. There was more silence until Hermione felt Viktor's body start to shake underneath her. She looked back at him to see his hand firmly placed over his mouth as he tried to fight the laughter. She raised an eyebrow and he couldn't it back. His laughter was deep and full. He stood up with her in his arms and spun around.

"Do not think even my father has yelled at Mama." He kissed her once and set her back on the couch. He got on one knee and looked at her thoughtfully. Carefully he removed the engagement ring from her finger he fell silent. He had been planning on doing this in a much more romantic setting, but right now was perfect. Because it was on this day that he realized that he needed her smiling face to make his days brighter. It was this evening that he felt like they were a real couple at last. What was more natural than comforting the one you care for after they had a hard day? And it was at that moment he found out that Hermione had the guts to take on even his own mother. It may sound silly, but when he was a young boy his father said to try and find a woman who was strong enough speak her mind no matter who she was speaking to. Yes, now was the perfect time. "Hermione. Vill you marry me?"

The lioness was more than a little confused at the moment. First the laughter, then the spinning, and then the proposal to the man she was already going to marry. "Viktor the wedding is just…" She was cut off by one of his fingers to her lips.

"No. I vant to know if you vill marry me. I know I have made you promises in the past, but I never felt the moment right was to ask you. I vasn't sure how I felt about you. So please imagine that the law does not exist. Just that ve have been together for a little over two months. And although it is sudden I am here asking for your hand." He took a deep breath and licked his lips before he could continue. Who would have thought it was so difficult to ask you fiancée to marry you? "You are smart, beautiful, loyal, loving, confident and full of spirit. You have seen a lot of evil and sadness, but you can still smile. And it is a smile that makes me vant to smile. You are more than I could ever deserve. I vill try and become a man you can be proud of. A man who you feel can protect you. I vill be the kind of man who can keep that smile on your face. So I am asking you again: Hermione Granger vill you marry me?" He held the ring up and waited for her to say something. A deep kiss and happy tears were all the answer he needed.

A/N: Okay please please please tell me what you thought of this chapter. Heads up the next chapter is the big day! It's going to be epic. I promise you that. ^^ Okay see you guys in the next chapter.


	22. Getting Married

A/N: Wow…so after all this I'm finally getting to the wedding. I don't know how you guys put up with me. Lol This chapter was really hard for me, because I wanted to create my own version of a Wizard wedding without having to bore you wonderful readers with too much detail. I hope I did alright. This chapter is for AuntLynnie, thank you for all the help! And thanks to all the wonderful reviewers! I can't write this story without all your wonderful support. Now, on with the story!

Getting Married

"And Bulgaria wins 740 to 310. And thus ends one of the longest games in the history of the Bulgarian team. And there they go. Sorry fans it doesn't look they will be signing autographs today. No doubt rushing off to Seeker Viktor Krum's wedding ceremony, which I'm told starts in less than half an hour." The announcer said, explaining to the sparse crowd why the winning team was rushing off the field, nearly tripping over each other to get to the showers.

"I am going to be late for my own vedding! How is it possible that the game took _eight days_ to finish?" Viktor he said yanking off his clothes and hitting the shower.

"Viktor, you are not going to be late. You still have an hour. And this little thing called magic will help you get there with time to spare." Lev, too, was turning on the shower, "Besides it is your own fault that the game vent on as long as it did. I don't think I can remember you ever being so distracted during a game." Every stall was filled with players trying to wash quickly while others prepared to make a quick exit while waiting their turn. The whole team had been invited to the wedding, so everyone seemed to be in a mild state of panic.

"I have never had my own vedding so close to a game before. You try playing vith that on your mind."

"I still do not understand vhy you just did not let a reserve Seeker take your place."

"It vas Hermione. She insisted I play until the very last minute. She said I vould regret it if I vas not the one to end the game."

"So she is starting to like the game more?" Lev knew what Hermione's feelings toward Quidditch were. Still she had yet to miss a game, and she still came to many of the practices. When Viktor was off doing Seeker training some of his teammates would try to tease and coax her onto a broom. Hermione was so stubborn about the whole thing that the team actually started a betting pool on who would get her on a broom first. The prize was growing bigger and bigger every week, so much so that even the coach and assistant coaches had joined in.

"She is beginning to come around." The groom burst out of the shower and grabbed a towel to dry off quick as one of the reserve Chasers took his place under the water. He went to his locker and smiled when he opened it up. There were his dress robes waiting for him just like he asked Dorian to do earlier that morning. He took his wand out of the pocket and muttered a few spells. In a matter of seconds the towel was wrapped around his waist, a shaving kit appeared in front of him and a mirror hung on the locker door. "I promised her I vould make sure all the men were ready. Miroslav and Valko met two of Hermione's brothers, Fred and George. They have been making everything harder. They keep trying to turning the robes pink." He told Lev who was shaving right next to him.

"I vill be there to help you. Just calm down and remember this is going to be the best day of your life." Lev told him with a chuckle. Viktor put down his razor with a sigh and shook his head.

"Sometimes I vonder if this story is going to end vith happily ever after. This is happening too quickly. Vhat if she decides living in the Muggle vorld vould be better than this." He covered his face in aftershave and tried to be as calm as the man next to him. That was a hard thing to do when the very thought of Hermione leaving tide his stomach in knots. "There is still time for her to leave all of this behind." Lev put firm hands on his best friend's shoulders.

"Viktor I think if she vas going to do something like that then she vould have a long time ago. Hermione is not the kind of girl to put off something until the last minute." Lev reassured him. Viktor nodded and smiled. He pulled at his robes and looked at Lev.

"Vell? How do I look?" His robes were the traditional black. They were slightly longer than casual robes shot through with the tiniest gold and red threads the bits of color jumped out and shined when the light hit them. His hair was trimmed and his face was now clean shaven. His family crest hung on a gold chain around his neck. All in all he was rather dashing, but Lev was never going to admit that out loud.

"You vill pass I guess, but let us be honest you vould be much better looking if you vere me." Lev smiled and shook his head. Keeping one hand on Viktor's shoulder the older man stood on a bench. "Everyone, our little Viktor is going to be losing his freedom in less than an hour! Be sure to be there in time to see it!" With that he pulled the mildly bewildered Viktor with him to the Floo gate.

Meanwhile, Hermione was dealing with her own issues. Her robes were very much like Viktor's though they were cut to show off her figure just a bit. Her hair tied back in an elegant French braid and her makeup was painted on with perfection. She was ready to get married, -the sooner the better. After everything was cleared up from the late-minute dress fitting the women took it upon themselves to tell her what to expect on her wedding night. She had sat through "The Talk" that Mari, Molly, and a few other women decided to give her. Hannah, Luna and Ginny were all told to sit in another room and Christy chose to join them rather than hear the older women explain to the bewildered witch about the birds and the bees.

"That should be all you need to know." Molly said smile. The only response she received from the wide-eyed young bride was a very weak "okay". The Weasley matriarch looked at the girl she had so long viewed as her own daughter and became very misty eyed. "I don't think I'm ready to see you get married." She said, snapping Hermione out of her fear and shock. The other women quietly left the room so the two could have a few moments of privacy. "You're only a child. You're far too young for all of this."

Hermione hugged her adopted mother and smiled a little. "Mum, may I remind you that up until this point you've been one of the biggest supporters of this wedding." She tried to laugh a little although she was a bit confused. She had heard mothers became emotional at their daughter's wedding, but this was a completely different person she was seeing.

"Oh that was so the boys would have an example to follow. You know them, if I hadn't put on a brave face, they would have followed suit and caused more problems. And you had enough on your plate…" She wiped her eyes. Hermione looked at the woman she now called Mum and smiled. Nobody gave Molly enough credit, it seemed, but in truth she was probably the strongest and most perceptive person in the entire family. "Now dear if you ever need a place to go you know the Burrow is always open to you." Hermione merely nodded, too touched for words.

There was a little knock on the door. "Molly, everybody is getting in their place. We start in about fifteen minutes. Viktor and the boys are all dressed. No pink robes." Arthur walked in. He took a look Hermione and smiled. "Look at you. All grown up. Getting married." He gave her a hug before looking to his wife. "Did you give it to her yet?" He asked.

"Not yet, you came just in time." Molly took out a black velvet box. "We got this for you." She handed Hermione the gift. Hermione knew refusing the gift would be useless, so she simply opened it. Inside was a beautiful square gold locket with the Krum family crest on the front of it. She opened up to see something that made her breath stop for a moment. There was a photo of her parents in one half and a photo of Viktor and her together. She put a hand to her chest and simply stared at the thoughtful gift. Molly took her husband out by the hand and led him out of the room to give the young woman a chance to herself.

Hermione looked at herself in the mirror. She saw the perfect young witch bride. The bride in the reflection was collected, beautiful, and ready to face whatever the future held for her. If that was what her reflection showed her, why did she feel like her world was about to end? "This is stupid. Viktor is wonderful. I have an amazing family who has been supporting me every minute since this started. I should be the happiest witch in the world." She pressed a hand to the cool glass of the mirror and closed her eyes. In a single moment she saw everything she was losing because of the Marriage Law. Hogwarts. Dating. Privacy. Even her freedom, to a certain extent. "You can run Hermione. Muggle life isn't so bad. You grew up that way. You could run right now and leave it all behind."

She opened up her eyes and looked into the mirror one more time, only Viktor was standing beside her in her mind's eye. She saw them sitting in the gardens of Crystal Air smiling and laughing. She saw countless celebrations being held in that very manor. Her whole family, Weasleys and Krums, were right beside her just as they had always been. If she ran now, she would be giving them up, too. She would be completely alone in the Muggle world. And worst of all, she would not have Viktor in her life. This was probably not the choice she would have made for herself had the Marriage Law not played a part in her life, but this was the choice she was making _now_. She wanted to stay by his side and share a wonderful future with him. There would be good times and bad, but there was no way she was going to miss any of it.

"They do say marriage is the adventure of a lifetime." She told her reflection with a smile. What kind of Gryffindor would she be if she missed out on an adventure?

Hermione took a deep breath in and let it out slowly. "Alright, it's time to become Mrs. Viktor Krum." She slipped her new locket around her neck and gave her hair one final check before opening the door where everyone was waiting. She noticed that the Weasleys looked relieved and realized that they had just given her a chance to run. They wanted to give her one last opportunity to make her own choice. "Okay everyone, let's get this show on the road." She took Mr. Weasley's arm and they started making their way to where her groom was waiting.

The ceremony was being held outside so there would be a spot for everyone to see. As far as she could see, almost everyone she'd invited had made the trip, and everyone she knew from Viktor's family dotted his side of the venue. There were dozens of familiar faces. Family, friends, team mates, officials, press, and everyone in between was present and dressed in their finest robes looking like a bright flock of parrots. Somewhere beyond her view, a band was playing music but she wasn't paying much attention to the melody. Since she and Viktor were the only ones in black, it was easy enough to spot him standing in the Binding Circle.

He was so handsome standing there, looking excited, overjoyed and mildly nervous. She smiled at him and stopped just outside the Circle. Arthur gave her a light peck on the cheek, "Well Hermione this is where life is leading you for now. Be brave and remember you are loved no matter what you do or where you are." All she could do was nod her head and look at her father with misty eyes.

Viktor took one of her hands and led her to join him inside the Binding Circle. Hand and hand, they faced Kingsley Shacklebolt, who had agreed to perform the ceremony. They waied for him to utter the words that would ultimately change their lives. He smiled at the couple as he tied their linked hands together with a black silk ribbon. "Ladies and gentlemen we are gathered here today to witness the joining of these two people in matrimony. They will commit themselves to one another in front of all those who love and care for them. Black is the color of an end. These two are ending their old lives. They will no longer be simply daughter, son, brother or sister. From this point on they are also going to be husband, wife, mother, and father." He nodded to the young pair and the faced each other.

Kingsley muttered a small incantation and the Circle began to glow white around them. "Please repeat after me: This is the beginning of a new life."

"This is the beginning of a new life." They both repeated. Hermione was looking up into Viktor's eyes as calm as ever. As soon as they started repeating the words, Viktor had taken her other hand in his. He was staring back at her with a soft seriousness that Hermione had only ever seen when they were first matched up together and when he proposed to her the second time.

"Though times may be black and uncertain…."

"Though times may be black and uncertain…"

"I shall stand by your side."

"I shall stand by your side." In the back of her mind she could hear sniffling and few sighs. But she didn't bother to look and see who it was. Her entire focus was on the man in front of her and the words they were speaking.

"For now I am yours as you are mine."

"For now I am yours as you are mine." There was a small commotion coming from behind her, but she paid it no mind. She could feel Viktor's hands become warmer and warmer with each passing moment. At least she thought the warmth was coming from him, it was hard for her to tell.

"Now be sealed together through magic and love. Now let your new lives begin as husband and wife." Kingsley said with a small smile. In flash of color the black robes the newly married couple were wearing turned bright white and the small bits of gold and red bloomed like flowers into beautiful patterns. Viktor leaned in to kiss his new wife when there was some loud screaming coming from behind him. Instinctively he pulled Hermione to him as the light of spellfire were being aimed at them.

"Hold on tight to me." The groom whispered into her ear. The now white ribbon that still bound them together glowed and they disappeared from the Binding Circle. Hermione clung to Viktor as they were transported to the empty Bulgarian Qudditch practice fields. As soon as she felt the ground firmly under her feet, the bride dared to open her eyes a little. Seeing they were alone she relaxed and looked up at her husband.

"Do you mind explaining to me what just happened?" She asked quietly. The weather was still reasonably warm and sunny, which helped make the atmosphere feel all the more calming. Viktor took her hand and started walking at a leisurely pace.

"Dorian and a few others felt it necessary to make sure ve had a Portkey available just in case ve vere to get attacked during the ceremony. It'll glow vhen it is safe for us to return for the reception." Hermione nodded, but stopped short looking freezing in midstep.

"Reception? But what about the rest of the ceremony?"

"Vhat do you mean? That vas all there vas to the ceremony."

"I mean we have been planning the wedding for months. Countless hours going over the smallest details. All of that for a five minute ceremony?" Hermione couldn't help feeling more than a little cheated somehow. "I didn't even get a chance to take a look at everyone's robes, or look at the flowers, or greet any of the guests." Her expression was that of a child who had been handed a long awaited Christmas present only to have in taken away. Viktor couldn't help laughing. He picked her up and spun her around in circles.

"I promise that our next vedding vill be much smaller and you can take all the time you vant to talk to the guests and look at robes." He told her setting her down before she got too dizzy. "However there is something I am disappointed ve missed." He said with great seriousness. Hermione looked at him a little worried.

"And what would that be?" A smile broke out on his face and he pulled her close.

"Our first kiss as husband and vife." He bent down and kisses his wife with as much passion and love as he could possibly fit into a kiss. Without any hesitation Hermione returned the kiss and for that one moment everything was perfect. It seemed like an eternity passed before either was willing to break that first kiss. Viktor was the one to pull away. Gently he rested his chin on top of her head as he continued to hold the love his life. He closed his eyes so he could engrave the day into his memory. Lev had been right when he said it was the best day of his life.

"Viktor." Hermione softly pulled him out of his thoughts.

"Hmmm."

"Viktor."

"Vhat?"

"The ribbon is glowing." The ribbon was indeed glowing giving them the signal that it was safe to return to chaos that was their wedding day.

"Just a few more moments."

"Why? You know the longer we're here they more they'll get anxious." The last thing she wanted was to face a worry stricken wedding party.

"But I still vant more!" He almost sounded like a whining child. The bride shook her head looking her groom in the eye.

"More of what?"

"More of this." And his lips were pressed against hers once more.

However, somewhere far away from this kissing couple, someone was seething in anger. "What did I do wrong? Everything should have fallen into place!" He slammed his fist on the table using language that would turn even the most hardened sailor pale. "Fine…fine. There will be plenty more chances in the future. Good things come to those who wait." A hand ran through dark hair as he took a few calming breaths. He picked up an older photo of Hermione off of the table that had been taken when she received her Order of Merlin. One of his fingers caressed her image affectionately, "I can wait. Just a little longer."

A/N: Cliffy! . . . So the upcoming chapter will be about the reception. If anyone has any ideas I'm more than happy to hear them. Thanks for reading Fated! See you in the next chapter. :)


	23. Muggle Reception

A/N: Okay here it is everyone the new chapter! I'm sorry it took so long to get this story updated. I'm a full-time student and have two part-time jobs. Doesn't leave a lot of time for fan ficing. However summer is here and I'm going to do my best to update as much as possible while I have the chance. This chapter for TANick and Kyria of Delphi. Thanks for watching my back. And a big big big thank you to AuntieL. You are the best beta ever!

Muggle Reception

Hermione once again found herself in the middle of a flock of clucking hens as soon as she and Viktor arrived to the manor where the reception was being held. Hermione had originally wanted the reception to be family-only at Crystal Air, but that idea was brushed away as soon as she had placed it on the table. There was no possible way to make it a family-only reception, and it would be unsafe should an enemy learn where they lived.

"Hermione are you okay? You and Viktor didn't take any hits, did you?" Surprisingly, Ginny was the first to reach the couple when they appeared. The bride was immediately yanked away from her groom's arms so that the maid of honor could perform a closer inspection. When the ginger was satisfied her friend was unhurt she proceeded to pull Hermione to where the other women were waiting to get her ready for the Muggle part of the celebration.

"Oh do I really have to do all the changing? It'll take forever and I'll miss the reception." She whinged as she was led into a dressing room. To her surprise, all the women were dressed for the party. There wasn't a fresh robe in sight, but neither was her wedding dress.

Christy seemed to understand her confusion and laughed out loud. "Hermione, you forget that you live in a world of magic."

Madam Lori walked over to her and clipped the bracelet that Luna had given her around her wrist. In mere moments her beautiful white wizarding robes changed into an equally beautiful satin dress. It fell just above her knees in the front and gradually got longer around the back. It had a sweetheart neckline, and the bodice fit her like a glove. Instead of a bright normal white, the color was more of cream that was accented by caramel trimming. Her hair tumbled out of the braid into a cascade of curls down her back. The look was completed by matching ballet slippers tied in bows just below her knees.

"It's perfect." She said to Madam Lori, twirling a little. It was exactly what she'd asked for: something simple and easy to move in. The designer seemed pleased as punch at the words of praise she was receiving from the whole party. There was a small knock at the door and Viktor entered. Hermione raced into his arms with a smile on her face. He looked amazing in is tailored tuxedo. The family crest no longer hung around his neck, but was pinned to the breast of his jacket.

"I vanted to give you something before the reception started." He took two simple silver wedding bands from his pocket. The smaller ring matched Hermione's engagement ring and nestled perfectly against it when Viktor slid it on her finger. Hermione took the larger ring and looked at it for a moment. It was silver with a small inset diamond. On the inside of the band were the initials V.K. and H.K. "Mrs. Krum…," he whispered into her ear before she slipped it on.

"That's going to take some getting used to," she told him. Viktor just smiled and kissed her.

"Oh, enough of that you two. You have guests waiting out there." Molly and the other women all exited the room in a gaggle of giddy giggles. Hermione's arm was linked with her husband's and she leaned against him.

"Something tells me I'm going to wish the reception was as short as the ceremony," she said quietly.

"I just vant to skip to the honeymoon," Viktor whispered into her ear. His voice was heavy with lust; his arm snaked around her waist as he pulled her close, his lips skimming the outside of her ear, trailing kisses down to where her shoulder met her neck. He planted a soft kiss there, making his bride go weak at the knees.

"Stop that! We're about to be presented for the first time as husband and wife. I'd like to look… presentable!" she said, her voice a little uneven. Viktor cut off anymore protests with a deep, breathtaking kiss as his hands seemed to wander everywhere on her body. Weeks of sexual tension was making itself known louder than ever.

The words, "May I be the first to present Mr. and Mrs. Viktor Krum." cut their little snog session shorter than either would have liked. Viktor said some very colorful Bulgarian words that made Hermione giggle. Even if she didn't fully understand their meaning, she understood the frustration behind them.

"How about ve only stay for a little vhile, and then ve can go off to Spain?" Viktor tried to convince Hermione quietly as they walked into a room full of cheering people. It was so loud that his words were only heard by his wife, and even then she had barely caught them.

"Not a chance. I didn't get nearly enough time to enjoy the ceremony, so we are going stay here until I'm completely satisfied," she said through a smile. The couple was standing at the entrance, smiles plastered on their faces, as countless photos were being taken of them.

Viktor could think of many other ways that he could satisfy her once the honeymoon would begin, but he said the two words that every good husband should know, "Yes dear." There was some more cheering and whistles as he bent down to kiss her again. "Now let's go to our table. I have been up since before dawn and I am very hungry." With an arm around the blushing bride, Viktor led her to the main table where the rest of the wedding party-their parents, Ginny, Hannah, Luna, Christy, Lev, Valko, Kamen- were all there waiting for them at the large round table. The rest of the boys were sitting at a table right next to them. Everyone was dressed to the nines and looking very happy.

The guests of honor sat down and the meal, the _feast_, began. There was a lot of discussion about the ceremony, teasing about the honeymoon, and advice-giving about married life. Radko found his way to the main table and made it a point to sit on Hermione's lap for a while. He made everybody laugh when he asked guilelessly, "How are you and Viktor going to make me an uncle?" Poor Hermione's face went as red as a Gryffindor scarf. The older Krums quickly and quietly –and firmly- explained that they would tell him when he was older.

Throughout the meal, people came to the head of the table to congratulate the newlyweds. Old school-mates, various professional Qudditch players, Ministry officials, and everyone in between wanted to wish the couple well. One of the most delightful meetings was when Dorian came to the table with his partner Adam who was in his late thirties with brown hair that was beginning to grey just a bit. He was tall and well built. Hermione would later learn that he was a retired Qudditch player. He was obviously a man of few words, for he simply let Dorian make the introductions and do the talking. His taciturnity seemed more politely restrained than aloof, and the way Dorian's eyes sparkled when he glanced over at his man made it obvious that he was deeply in love.

When the time came, Hermione pulled Viktor over to the cake and they cut it together. The witch couldn't resist smashing her piece in Viktor's face. She giggled until he got his revenge by "accidently" spilling his champagne down the front of her dress, which was met by a good deal of laughter from the crowd. They danced their first dance and Hermione complimented Viktor on his greatly improved dancing skills.

The day wore on into night and some of the guests started getting quite a bit tipsy. Viktor made sure to dance with his mother and Molly soon after the first dance with his wife. Hermione danced with Arthur and Ognyan. She then proceeded dancing with _all_ her brothers. The most interesting and memorable dance was when Fred and George attempted to do a three-person tango with her.

"Hermione!" Harry and Ron came up from behind her and pulled her aside as she was sitting down rubbing her very abused, very stepped-on feet.

"Are you okay? You didn't get hit by any spells, did you?" Harry asked, checking her over with brotherly affection. He had been dying to make sure she was okay ever since she and Viktor had first arrived.

"I'm fine guys. We got away before the spells got too close," she assured her two best friends. Since it seemed a good time to escape, she motioned to the two of them that the three of them should go outside to the garden while they had a chance. Once outside, the Golden Trio didn't say much for a while, each lost in his or her own thoughts. Without thinking, Hermione pulled the two boys into a hug. "I wish I could go with you." She said quietly. They returned the hug, not saying anything. They both knew she was referring to Hogwarts. Tomorrow, they would be taking the Hogwarts Express without her for the first time ever. They would be at school and she would be in Spain on her honeymoon.

"It's not going to be so bad Mione," Ron said. "I mean, we did get special permission to meet you at Hogsmead every other weekend." Professor McGonagall had called it a wedding present, but Hermione had a feeling that it may have been something a little deeper than that.

"Yeah, but it's not the same," she mumbled. She pulled away from the hug and walked toward a small pond.

"I know, but on the other hand we knew things were going to be different even before the Law was passed. I mean, this would have been the first year we didn't have to worry about Voldemort." Harry picked up a stone and threw it in the water.

Hermione threw a stone as well. Harry had received the news along with his list of needed supplies. "It would have been a perfect year." She sighed and sat on a nearby bench.

"We can't linger one what could have been, Hermione. We have to focus on what is and what will be." Ron sat on one side of her and Harry sat on the other. "After all, it's the future we have to look forward to." He looked over to his two friends who were starting at him in a mixture of shock and awe. "What?"

"Ron, I think that is probably the wisest thing you've ever said," Harry told his friend as Hermione giggled at her friend's offended look. The trio stood in silence for a long while. The loud music and the dozens of voices from coming inside didn't seem to reach their ears. They simply stood there, close to each other, lost in thought. Heavy footsteps came from behind them, breaking the trance.

"I am sorry. I hope I am not interrupting anything." They all turned around to see the groom. Hermione didn't hesitate going over to his side. She didn't turn back to look at her friends; her eyes were only on her husband.

"I just needed some fresh air. And Ron and Harry wanted to make sure I was okay after the attack at the ceremony." Viktor looked over to the two young men and nodded. An unspoken message passed between the three and Viktor put an arm around his bride.

"Mama vants you inside. Ve have to take some more photos vith the vedding party." Hermione nodded and started heading back inside, but she stopped when she noticed that Viktor wasn't following. He motioned her for to go ahead so he could have a moment alone with her two friends.

None of the young men said anything until Hermione was well out of ear shot. "So, did you tell her?" Viktor asked the two. Ron shook his head and Harry ran his hand through his already mussed hair.

"No. I'm honestly not sure how to tell her," Harry said as he kicked at the ground.

"It's all on you now. You've got to be the one to protect her." Ron walked over to Viktor and gave him a pat on the back. "Dad told me they traced the spells to someone who went to Hogwarts, but he didn't say if it was a previous student or a current student who'll be returning tomorrow."

"How did they trace that?" Harry asked, still in the dark about various aspects of the Wizarding world.

"Even if two people learn the same spell, who they learned it from leaves a small unique imprint on the spell. Usually it is impossible to tell any difference unless you are a specialist in Charms. Thankfully the Hogwarts Charm's teacher was close by and noticed it as one of his pupils' charms. Exactly who cast it is still a complete mystery," Viktor explained, though his eyes were on the party going on inside trying to find the woman who held his heart.

"That sounds like something you would hear from a crime drama."

The Bulgarian and the red head both gave Harry a confused look.

"Never mind, it's a Muggle thing."

Ron gave Viktor a slap on the back and headed inside. Harry lingered for a moment and nodded his head.

"Yeah. You have to be the one to protect her now." He motioned that they should catch up with Ron and the two walked back inside the wedding chaos.

Viktor quickly went to his bride's side and stood for more photos. The night wore on for what seemed to be forever. Hermione finally tapped Viktor on the shoulder and gave him a meaningful look. Viktor nodded in agreement and they started saying their good-byes. It was easier than expected, since so many of the guests had left already. Reporters had to write about the decade's most talked about wedding. Hogwarts students had to prepare for their return to school. Other's left simply because it was getting late. Mostly family remained and a few friends. After hugs, kisses, back slaps, and awkward high-fiving, the couple used their Portkey to transport them into the bedroom of a small villa on the southern coast of Spain.

"That was probably the second-longest day of my life," Hermione said, nearly falling onto the bed unceremoniously. Viktor undid his tie and removed his jacket before sitting next to her on the bed.

"I am not going to ask vhat could possibly be longer than that." He lay down next to her and they both just stared at the ceiling for a while. Finally Hermione sat up and walked towards the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

Viktor sat up and started to undo his shirt. "Ve do not have to do anything," he muttered mostly to himself. This was one part of the law that he had been trying to put out of his conscious thoughts. He knew that she was still innocent. He, on the other hand, had experience… though never with someone as pure and untouched as she.

Over the past few weeks, she had gotten used to his touch. She had gone from shy to eager when it came to kissing and exploring. Earlier, they had been playful and even a little daring; however, now it seemed different. What was required from them went beyond a simple snog. "I vill _not_ pressure her." He reassured himself quietly. They had been sleeping in the same bed for a while; tonight didn't have to be any different. They could simply sleep the long day away.

"Viktor." A soft voice from behind drew him from his thoughts. He turned and caught his breath. Standing in front of him was a vision. Her hair was free of all adornment and hanging loose down her back. The only things she wore were a pair of crimson lace panties and matching bra. They covered just enough to make the beholder anxious to take them off and reveal what treasure lay beneath. The look in her eyes was nothing short of hungry and lustful. She walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his neck, looking up at him with those impassioned eyes.

"Hermione. Ve do not have to do this now. Ve still have time." Viktor said softly, though his willful arms snaked their way around her waist. "I promise I vill not make you do anything you do not want to-" It was clear he was going to say more, but he was cut off by Hermione's lips pressing against his. She broke away and trailed kisses from his neck down to his chest.

"Viktor, this is something I've wanted for quite a while. Please don't deny me our wedding night," Hermione whispered. She took a step back and Viktor saw a flicker of uncertainty, hurt and disappointment in her eyes. She broke free from his arms, turned her back to him, and walked away from him, shoulders slightly slumped. That was his undoing. He reached for her pulling her to him so his chest was pressed against her back.

"I have vanted this more than you could ever know." He spun her around so that he could kiss her with all the passion he could muster. What little clothing that had remained on their bodies dropped to the floor and the two practiced the most ancient dance in the world.

A/N: I'm not changing the rating of the story. If you want to read about what happened during the honeymoon you must go to Adult Fan Fic. Net. That is where you will find the rated M version of this story. If you have any comments or suggestions please feel free to tell me. See you guys next chapter!


	24. Fast Changes

A/N: This was the single hardest chapter I've ever written. Originally it was almost four separate chapters, but they all seemed so long winded and boring. Thanks Auntie L! You are a wonderful beta. I didn't want that for my precious readers bored. Okay, let's just get own with the story

Fast Changes

Hermione stared out at the Portkey and sighed, "Do we really have to go back?" She asked her husband who was occupying himself by kissing softly up and down her neck. Their honeymoon had been so peaceful, passionate, and perfect that it felt almost like a dream: a dream she didn't want to end.

"As soon as the season is done ve vill come back." Viktor held her a little closer as she reached for the Portkey. In seconds they were home in the gardens of Crystal Air. The colours of the trees were fading with autumn, but the whole place felt bright and new. The couple didn't say anything for a few moments as they took in the moment. They both realized their new life was really beginning that very moment. Viktor picked Hermione up and kissed her on the lips deeply. "Velcome home, Mrs. Krum."

Hermione giggled a little as her love carried her into their home and up to the master bedroom they would now share. The room was very much like her old one if a little bigger. The room was decorated in warm colors of brown, red, black, and plum. On the balcony sat a small rosewood tea table and two matching chairs. The bed was big and plush. The young wife blushed when she looked at it. Viktor looked down at his bride and smiled. With great care he placed her on the bed before joining her.

"Ve do not have to be anyvhere for a while. How do you think ve should kill the time?" He asked twirling one of her ringlets.

"Where are we going?" Hermione asked moving a little closer to him.

"Surprise." He said before halting anymore words with a tongue-heavy kiss and a hand traveling up her shirt.

"Tease." If she was talking about the surprise or his hand he couldn't be sure. So to keep her from asking more any questions, he deepened the kiss and began to pleasure her as he had on their honeymoon.

Much later, Hermione lay naked on top of her hot and heavy husband. A satisfied smile was on her lips as she let him run a hand through her hair. A part of her knew it would be one of the last quiet times they would have like this for a while once Viktor returned to Quiddtich.

"Ve have to get cleaned up and changed." He said kissing the top of her head. She groaned playfully and looked up at him.

"Why? I don't want to get up." She pouted up at him. Viktor sat up causing Hermione to roll off him.

"I have somevone for you to meet. So get out of bed so ve can get going." He headed to the en suite bath room to take a shower. Hermione didn't get out of bed until Viktor poked his head of the bathroom and looked at her with a suggestive smile. "It vould save time if you joined me in the shower." She rolled her eyes, not really believing that for a moment, but that didn't stop her from getting up and joining him. When they were finally cleaned up and ready to go, he Apparated them to a very familiar place: the Bulgarian Qudditch team's practice fields.

"This is not exactly where I thought we were going." She said quietly as he led her down now-familiar halls. Rather than going down to the fields like she expected, they went down halls to the medical area. There was only one person in the room. A man was sleeping with his feet on a desk and a porno magazine covering his face. The sound of snoring coming from under the magazine really made Hermione silently question why they were there.

"Asen, vake up. I brought your student." Viktor kicked the man's desk hard enough to startle the man awake. He slowly stood, not saying anything. He was about six feet tall with grey hair and a belly that told Hermione he rarely missed a meal. Sleepy blue-grey eyes looked her over for a few moments before a hand was extended.

"I am Asen, the head wizard of the Bulgarian medical team." Hermione shook it the hand, but still didn't say another. The older wizard didn't seem to notice or mind her silence. He started to rummage around in his desk as the witch looked to her husband for answers.

"Asen has agreed to teach you the basics of vhat you vill need to know for you medi vitch exam." He explained while Asen cursed in the background. Viktor must have seen her try to hide her _"this guy?"_ look because he chuckled a little. "He may not look it, but Asen is considered vhat most vould call a genius. He has come up vith many spells that have healed players on site. And the players he takes care of tend to stay in the league longer. His healings last much longer than most vith a much lower rate of re-injury." Hermione still looked and glanced over to the healer who now had a big stack of books on his desk.

"You are lucky to be my student. I do not like taking an apprentice. Too much vork. But Severus said you vere a good student who vorks hard and learns quickly, so maybe you vill not be as bad as the others." He sighed and nodded to the books. "You vill be my student for two years. Ve start vith the basics. From seeing your test results, I think this part should not last long. Vhen I feel you have a good understanding of basics ve will move onto potions and charms. Severus has agreed to help vith this from time to time. However I understand that you are to become pregnant very soon." Hermione blushed a little and nodded. "If this happens vhile ve are vorking on potions, ve vill simply svtich to charms. I vant to start with potions since it takes the most time." He handed most of the books to Viktor and Hermione took the remaining few.

"Are these my reference books?" She asked looking at the formidable stack.

"No. I vant you to have these read by the next time ve meet. I vill test you on this and ve vill see how much we need to study the basics." He sighed and sat back down in his chair returned his feet to the top of his desk. "Now go. Ve meet again in two veeks." The magazine was set back on his face and the couple left him to his snoring.

They didn't say much as they returned to Crystal Air. Viktor let the books drop on the living room table and sat in his favorite chair. Hermione was already opening one book to start her studies, but her husband wanted none of that. He plucked the book out of her hands only to throw it on the table with the rest of them. Strong arms pulled her onto his lap and soft lips brushed the curve of her neck. "There vill be plenty of time for study. This is our last day before I go back to the game and you are buried in books again. Let us just spend it like ve have the rest of the veek." His voice was very quiet and his grip tightened just enough to make her feel perfectly safe.

"I guess you have a point. I'll start tomorrow." She twisted around and kissed her Seeker. The love making traveled from the chair down to the plush carpet in front of the fireplace. The couple took their time knowing it would be a while before they would have enough time and energy to enjoy each other's company in this way. As time passed they silently basked in the afterglow. Evening faded into night and they finally got up to have a late supper.

While Viktor was in the bathroom getting ready for bed, Hermione went to the big window and found the North Star. She clapped her hands and spun around to make her wish. "Please let things keep going as well as they have been." She said quietly.

"Vhat are you doing?" Viktor asked startling Hermione so much she jumped a little. She blushed a little, but she answered her husband's question.

"I'm making a wish. My grandmother taught me. I do it every night." He smiled and joined her at the window.

"How do you make the vish?"

"First, you find the North Star." She pointed to the sky and the chosen star. "Then you clap your hands and spin around." Hermione demonstrated. Viktor smiled and looked up at the star for a moment before copying Hermione's actions. After he spun he whispered, "Моля, нека винаги се радваме." The witch wasn't entirely sure what that meant, but she was happy to see her husband do her little night ritual. The two got into bed and fell into sleep.

Hermione's dream was very much like the one she had before the wedding only this time she was standing next to the lake at Hogwarts. It was a nice spring day and the breeze was warm. She looked around and saw no one. For all it was beautiful, a part of her was panicking. "Did you know this was where I first fell in love with you?" a voice asked. She could hear footsteps against the grass, but still didn't see anyone.

"You again? Where are you?" She asked trying to keep her voice calm. The person ignored both questions and continued to talk.

"You were standing here all alone without the two idiots you always had hanging on you. It was shortly after the truth of You-Know-Who's -return came out. It was truly the first time I saw you as more than Potter and Weasley's third wheel. You were so beautiful that day. You had the most wonderful determined look on your face and you were standing up straight and proud, like you were ready to fight the whole world single handedly. I started watching you from then on even if you didn't know it. After a few months I knew you had to be mine." An unseen hand ran through her hair. She wanted to run, but movement was impossible. Something was holding her tightly in place. "But you got married. Even after I told you not to." There was an indescribable amount of sorrow in the voice, but that didn't stop Hermione from wanting to flee as fast as she could

"Please let me go." She said in a near whisper.

"He doesn't deserve you." The man said. "I'm going to do to him what he did to me." Arms wrapped around her body and pulled her close in the same manner Viktor did. Only she didn't feel warm and safe in these arms. No, she felt terrified and angry at her helplessness. "Soon .Very soon." He chuckled a little and something clicked in Hermione's mind.

"I know you…You're…you're…"

"Hermione!" Her name jolted her away. She sat up with a start, nearly knocking heads with Viktor who had been shaking her lightly to draw her out of sleep. Her breathing was fast and she was soaked in a cold sweat. "Are you alright?" He asked softly while taking one of her hands in his. "You vere having a nightmare. Do you vant to talk about it?" He voice was soothing, but troubled. Once in a while she would dreams about the war and would wake up crying. This time, however, she had awoken him with whimpers of terror, and seeing her in such a state was a first.

The young wife looked at her concerned spouse and tried to smile. "I'm fine, Viktor. It was just a bad dream."

"Vhat vas it about?" He asked pulling her into his arms.

"It was…" She was going to tell him the truth. That someone wanted to hurt him or her somehow. Then she remembered in a few hours he was going to return to the pressures of his ordinary life. He didn't need to add worry over her to that list of stresses. She licked her lips and snuggled into his arms. "It was about the war…bad memories."

"Var is over. I promise you are safe as long as you are vith me," he said, trying to reassure her.

"I know. I trust you." She smiled a little as they both laid back down. His arms were still around her body, but she turned around so her back was against his chest. After a while she could hear the steady sound of his breathing and knew he was asleep. The dream kept her up late into the night. She knew she knew the owner of the voice, though try as she might she couldn't remember the name she was about to say before being waking up. The words echoed over and over in her mind, but the sound and origin of the voice eluded her. Finally she gave up and fell into a light and fitful sleep.

The morning dawned and the newlyweds woke and fell into the routine they had established before the wedding . Viktor headed to practice in preparation for the game that Saturday and Hermione hit the books. The day passed with a small visit from Molly during lunch which was followed by more studying. The next days passed similarly with very little variation. Whenever Viktor had a game, Hermione would attend, but would read a book during the times he wasn't playing. Sometimes she would leave the books at home and bring one of his brothers to help explain what was going on.

Radko especially liked tagging along and being spoiled. "I always vanted a big sister like you!" He would say from time to time. This always made her heart tug a little and she would give him hugs and sweets. Something about the little boy always brought out her maternal instincts. If the game was short, Viktor would usually take the two out to for dinner and would take his by then sleepy little brother home.

Soon they were summoned to the Ministry to have their follow-up appointment. It was the same day Hermione had to take Asen's first test. The exam was difficult, but she seemed to impress the new teacher a little bit. When she finished, he gave her a new stack of study materials that was almost twice the size of the first stack.

Viktor knocked on the door to the medical area and smiled at his wife, whose expression showed a mixture of dread and excitement. She didn't seem to notice his arrival, so he took out his wand and shrunk the books and scrolls on her desk, causing her to jump, startled. "Hermione ve have to go to the Ministry right now." He said quietly. With a wave of his wand the books were shrunk and in his pocket. Hermione smiled and took his hand.

In moments, they were at the Ministry office where they had been first reunited. They seemed to be the only ones there at the moment, so Hermione assumed that each couple had separate appointments this time. The little Ministry man who had called the names for the matches was standing outside a door. He smiled when he saw them. "You are right on time!" He ushered them to the room where the other Ministry officials were waiting for them.

When everyone was settled the fat little man addressed the couple. "First we wanted to offer our heartfelt congratulations on your wedding. It is splendid to see the youngest of the Chosen following the law so willingly." Hermione swallowed everything she wanted to shout at the Officials. She felt like a dog being praised for doing a trick. Viktor must have sensed her annoyance, because he gave her hand a soft reassuring squeeze. "Now we must find out if you followed the rest of the law." Two goblets appeared in front of them each holding a clear bubbly liquid. They took the cups and drank the contents. Both started to glow a light blue.

"Do you mind telling us what just happened?" Hermione asked quietly in hopes the assembly wouldn't hear the irritation in her voice as long as she kept the volume down.

"That potion tells us if the wedding night…been fulfilled." Came a slightly embarrassed answer. The young witch blushed. Her husband once again squeezed her hand when he heard "perverts" muttered. One more goblet appeared before Hermione and she took a drink. Her body's glow went from blue to green. All the Ministry members in approval and most were smiling. "Congratulations to the both of you. You are the first Chosen couple to conceive a child."

The words echoed Hermione's head again and. Any other words the man was say were been drowned out by the loud thumping of her heart and the "conceive" and "child". Time slowed all around her and breathing suddenly became impossible. She took one step back before everything went black. The last thing she was aware of was a strong pair of arms holding her close and a deep voice yelling her name.

She regained consciousness and felt steadily running through her hair. She struggled to open her eyes so that she could look up to see her husband. It was his hand that had been running through her hair. Her head was on his lap and judging by their surroundings they were in their bedroom back in Crystal Air. She tried to sit up, but he gently pushed her back down. "The medi vitch at the Ministry said you fainted, but everything is fine. Still you should rest a little."

She stopped trying to sit up. "Viktor…I'm pregnant," she said quietly. He nodded and continued to stroke her hair. "How…we used…the spell…" They both had agreed they would wait to try and have the required child when they were completely settled and the Qudditch season was over.

"There vas that time on the beach vhile ve were on our honeymoon," he reminded her softly. She thought back and remembered the moment. It had been so passionate that they completely forgot about the spell and didn't realize it until much later. The voices of her mother, Molly, and Mira all made themselves known in her mind_. "All it takes is one time to get you pregnant."_

"My mother used to say that if it veren't for the spell, the Krums vould take up half of Bulgaria," he said, trying to lighten the mood.

"Are you really bragging about your family's potency?"

"I vas just trying to make you smile a little."

"This…this is all happening too quickly," she said looking up at him. In a few short months she went from Hogwarts student to medi witch apprentice. From single girl to married woman. From a hero of the Second War to a victim of the Law. And now she was going to be a mother. She understood that Viktor was going through a lot of changes as well, but they were going at a more natural pace for him, even if they weren't under natural circumstances.

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Motherhood. It really wasn't _such _a big deal that it was happening a few months earlier than she'd expected, was it? No, no it wasn't. She would just face reality as she had with everything the Marriage Law had thrown into her life. Head-on and side by side with the love of her life. Hermione slowly sat up and kissed her husband.

"I don't want to tell anyone until we absolutely have to. Once Mum and Mama find out about the baby they'll be here every free moment we have in order to smother me with their 'motherly' affection," she told him. Viktor's face noticeably relaxed and he laughed a little.

"I promise not to tell a single soul until you are ready." He kissed her forehead and pulled her into an embrace. He knew she was putting on a brave face. He had been worried that she would be sad or even angry about the baby. It felt like another part of her future was being ripped away from her that he had no control to stop. But Viktor could tell that his wife was determined to make a happy future for them no matter what sudden changes happened in their lives.

He felt her shift on the bed, and looked over to see her hand rest on her stomach. "I really hope it's a girl." His hand joined her own smaller one.

"Yes, a girl vould be nice."

A/N: As always tell me what you think. Yes I will be updating faster than that. Love you all very much. See you in the next chapter.


	25. Startling News

A/N: Wow…here it is. Thanks Auntie L for being my beta. Now on with the story.

Startling News

Two months had passed since the day at the Ministry. Hermione was almost three months along in her pregnancy and it was now almost impossible to hide the swell of her stomach even with charms and loose baggy clothing. She knew that Molly and Mari were catching on, but they had yet to say anything out loud. The morning sickness was the hardest to hide. She had almost run out of excuses when it finally began to resolve. The only people the couple had told about the baby outside the Ministry were Asen, Harry, Ron, Christy, and Lev.

She looked at herself in the mirror and smiled. It was rather amazing that she and Viktor had created life together. It was a far greater magic than any spell or potion she had ever learned. The door to the master bedroom opened and her husband entered looking tired, confused, and very angry. This startled the young woman. It was rare for him to lose his temper. The only time she could really remember him ever getting mad was at the lunch where she first met Kamen, but that was all water under the bridge now. Kamen had grown to respect and even like her a little.

Viktor didn't say anything as he walked up to her. She didn't question him as his arms engulfed her in a firm yet careful embrace. She returned the hug, and they stood in their embrace for a little a while without saying a word. Finally, he loosened his grip around her and walked to the bed where he sat just as silently as he had been when he walked into the room. He buried his head in his hands as his wife came to sit beside him. She softly put her hand on his arm, "Viktor, what's the matter? Did you lose the game?" The season was winding down and Bulgaria had a strong lead in the finals. Viktor and Asen didn't allow her to sit in the stands and watch from the Family Box anymore since the temperature had been dropping with the onset of winter and they didn't want any of the other wives' pranks to get out of hand and risk injury. Both insisted she didn't need to risk her or the baby's health for the sake of watching the games.

"No. Ve von the game. Aftervards, the press asked me questions about the Law that I did not understand. Dorian recused me quickly and showed me this." He pulled out a folded piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to her. Hermione opened it up and noticed it was a newspaper article.

"I don't get it."

"Read it."

**Marriage Law Mayhem**

Arnold Penwick

_The current International Marriage Law has created a lot of controversy. Many are upset that such beloved members of magical society have been forced to give up, what most believe, is the freedom to make the greatest decision of their lives. After a great debate and many long hours it has been decided that all the marriages created by the International Marriage Law will be annulled and all obligations pertaining to the law will be voided. Nobody knows just how this will affect the couples. The St. Pauls are famous for their dislike of one another while the Krums are something akin to a fairy tale romance. Little else is known about the now dissolved law, but you can rest assured that we will keep you updated as details appear._

Hermione read and reread the little scrap of paper in total disbelief. It was almost laughable that once again the Ministry was making her life choices for her without consulting or even informing her first. "I don't understand. This is the first time I've heard of it. When we were going to be engaged, it was all I heard about for weeks." She said, trying to wrap her mind around what was happening.

Viktor stood and walked over to the master bathroom so he could strip out of his practice clothes. "I doubt the Ministries vanted to openly admit that the law vas stupid and they made a mistake."

"I suppose." She said walking to the window. "What should we do now?" She looked out the window trying to find her star. Strong bare arms came around her waist and held her close.

"Ve vait. I vill not let us be torn apart so easily." The couple stood there for a long while and simply stared at the stars. Hermione finally broke away from her husband and did her nightly routine and Viktor followed suit, and they went to bed with a lot on their minds. The next few days were tense. Hermione did her best to get through the days as cheerfully as possible. The holidays were coming up and she decided to have a family Christmas party at Crystal Air. It was still a month away, but between the Krums, the Weasleys, some Order members, and most of the Bulgarian Qudditch team, there was a lot to plan for.

She was looking at the menu when the Ministry owl flew to the window in the living window. Hermione walked over to the window and let the creature in. She took her time accepting the letter, giving the owl a treat. When it flew off, she stood and stared at the envelope that she knew would change her life yet again. With trembling hands, she picked opened it.

_Dear Mrs. Hermione Krum,_

_As you may know the recent International Marriage Law is being dissolved. The marriage between you and Mr. Krum will be null and void. You are to report to the Ministry so that the Binding spell can be undone. For the next year, you are to have no contact with Viktor Krum. After the year is done you may remarry once again if you wish. The year is to allow the public to see that the Ministries have given the Chosen time to think about their futures and choose their own destinies. More details will be shared when you arrive at the Ministry. We will be seeing you in a few days and apologise for any inconvenience this law has caused you and your family._

_The Ministry of Magic_

A short letter-a single paragraph- was all it took to end her happy marriage? "They can't do this!" She yelled slamming the letter on the table. What about the baby? Would Viktor be allowed contact with his child, since it would be born within the year they weren't allowed to see one another? Her hand went to her stomach as she started to pace around the room. Did the Ministry even understand that they were playing with the lives of real people, not just some pieces on a chess board? For once in her life, Hermione was not thinking rationally. She was only thinking about how she would be forcibly separated from the love of her life for a whole year and how he wouldn't be there for the birth of their child. She thought of how a few dozen of witches and wizards who didn't know anything about her were once again trying to take control of her life.

With no rational plan in mind, she threw on a warm winter cloak and went to the fireplace. "The Ministry of Magic" she yelled. She paid no mind to the dizzy feeling she got whenever she traveled by Floo. In the state she was in, she knew she couldn't properly concentrate enough to Apparate. She landed rather gracefully for someone enraged. Maybe if she had been a little more level-headed, she would have seen the man behind her. Maybe if she remembered all the warnings her mystery dream man gave her, she would have had her wand in hand. Maybe if she went straight to Viktor instead of the Ministry, she wouldn't have been hit a stunning spell. All those things went through her mind as her world went black.

The sound of cars, people, music, and overall noise were what woke her. Hermione sat up and looked around, trying to figure out where she was. The whole room was plainly decorated and there were no personal items anywhere to give clue to whose room she was in. When she tried to get out of bed, she found that she couldn't move her legs. Her heart raced in sudden panic and she tried to yell, but the walls seemed to eat the sound. Silencing spell. The door opened, "You're awake." The voice of her dreams said. In walked was the person who had been haunting her dreams for so long.

"Blaise Zabini?"

"Surprised?" He walked over casually and sat on the bed to be eye level with her.

"You hate Muggle borns. You hate those who associate with them." Hermione wanted to move as far as possible away from him, but she still couldn't move. There was something both calm and crazed about the look in his eyes that made her feel like something very bad was going to happen.

"There is an exception to every rule." He said quietly as he ran his hand through her hair while looking over her carefully.

"Why am I here?"

He chuckled a little and placed a finger on her lips. "Shhh. You'll find out when the time is right. I don't want to hurt you. Just HIM." Hermione didn't have to be psychic to know Blaise meant Viktor.

"He'll come and find me." She said, wishing the spells and wards on her and inside the room weren't so powerful.

"Oh, I'm counting on it."

Meanwhile, in the Bulgarian Quiddtich locker room, the team were going over the plays for the next matching when the doors burst open to produce Harry, Ron, Dorian, Kamen, Valko, and the Ministry Official who had pulled the names for the Matches. "Viktor, is Hermione here?" Harry asked, running over to the bewildered Seeker.

"No. She is at home. At least she should be." Viktor and Lev stood and walked over to the group. The whole team was silently watching the interaction. "Vhy? Vhat happened?"

"Mr. Krum we have reason to believe someone sent your wife a false Ministry letter."

"Vhy vould anyone do that?" Lev asked as Viktor tried process what was being said.

"Professor Flitwick figured out who used the spell. Dorian showed him all the wedding photos and they isolated all the people who were students at Hogwarts. With help, they determined that the one who shot the spell was Blaise Zabini. Professor Snape found a number of photos and articles with Hermione in them locked in his trunk. We think he's been planning something big for some time. Now we can't find him or Hermione."

Viktor felt his heart race harder than it ever had in any game. He looked frantically around at everyone and no one as if he would suddenly spot his love. He had to force himself to take deep breaths and calm down. "My pocket vatch that Dorian had for me. It has a tracking spell ve can use to find her." Without another word he raced to the locker room with a number of people following close behind. In a matter of seconds, the watch was in his hands and he muttered the words to activate the spell. Hermione's image appeared on the face of the clock as well as the address of the flat where she was being held captive in. All those around him took note of the address and in rapid succession Apparated.

Minutes had passed in silence as the dark wizard just kept staring at Hermione. She desperately wanted to get away from his gaze, but she was unable to move. As much as she hated being a damsel in distress, the young woman knew this was one of those times she would need rescuing.

"Tell me, what is the opposite of love?" Balise asked out of the blue. Hermione was startled by the sudden question, but figured it would be best to answer.

"It's hate."

"Wrong." He chuckled and played with one of her curls. "How odd to hear you get something wrong. No, my love, the true opposite is apathy." Hermione looked perplexed at such an answer, but said nothing. "When someone hates you, they remember everything about you. If you asked Potter about Voldemort, I'm sure he could paint you a detailed portrait of the man. If you hate someone, you know every way to make them tick. Draco knew all your pet peeves. He was probably the only Slytherin who knew almost as much about you as I do." The young man stood and began to pacing the room. There was obvious frustration in is voice and in glint in his eye she could only describe as manic. "But apathy is different; not caring if you're dead or alive…having no desire to learn more about another even if they know everything about you."

Blaise threw himself on the bed and gripped her shoulders hard. "I bet I've never entered your mind. You always seemed to look through me at school. But I was _always_ watching you. I know everything about you!" There was a loud crash and many voices screaming her name outside the bedroom door.

"Hermione are you in there?" Viktor yelled as others shouted spells at the heavily warded door trying to get it open. She couldn't answer him back because Blaise's hand was now clamped over her mouth. His lips came to her ear, brushing it softly as he spoke.

"You didn't have to marry him. I was going to protect you. I was going to be the one to give you the world on a silver platter." He whispered as his free hand reached inside the drawer of the small side table and pulled out his wand. As soon as she saw it, she started screaming into his hand. She shook her head, trying to free her mouth from his strong grip. Tears were streaming down her face freely. She wasn't feeling brave right now. All she felt was helpless and afraid…so afraid that Viktor wasn't going to save her in time from whatever her captor was planning. "He stole you from me. Now it's my turn to return the favor." He kissed her temple almost reverently and smiled softly down at her. He turned to face the door with the tip of his wand on the same place his lips had just touched while his other hand held firmly against her mouth .

Everything happened in just a few quick seconds, but to Hermione to whole world around her moved in slow motion. The loudest sound in the room seemed to be her heart beating rapidly in her chest.

_Thump bump. Thump bump. Thump bump._

The door exploded in before her eyes in a firework of wood.

_Thump bump. Thump bump. Thump bump._

Her eyes locked with Viktors'.

_Thump bump. Thump bump. Thump bump._

She thought, "I never said 'I love you' to him out loud."

_Thump bump. Thump bump. Thump bump._

She heard Blaise yell, "Obliviate!"

_Thump bump. Thump bump. Thump bump._

She felt a pain like any other. It was not one of the body, but of her very soul. After that there was only silence. Only emptiness. Blank eyes looked around the room, taking in all that surround her. The small room was crowded with people, but nobody moved. All were looking at her in worry and shock. Except one man, who was smiling triumphantly as he was restrained by a glasses wearing young man

One young man in a red uniform of some kind walked over to her and knelt by her side. He took her hand as softly as he could and looked her in the eyes as if searching for something. She looked back unsure of what to say or do. "Hermione?" He asked in a thick foreign accent. She looked at him in confusion.

"Who's Hermione?" She asked quietly. She put a hand to her head and closed her eyes, trying to remember that name. When she opened them back up and looked at the man holding hand, she said the only words that seemed to come to mind: "Who are you?"

A/N: I have to tell you I cried a little when I wrote this. Comments and reviews are welcomed as always. See you in the next chapter.


	26. Lasting Pain

A/N: I know I say this about every other chapter, but this one was probably the hardest to write. You'll see that it's different from the others in one major way. I won't give it away, you can just go and read it yourself. Hope you enjoy this chapter of Fated.

Lasting Pain

Molly Weasley sat at the kitchen table watching the family clock with a cold cup of tea in her hands. It was one of those days where she was the only person in the house. Usually it was a nice to have some time to herself. She would catch up on her reading, or knit the Christmas sweaters, or simply take a pleasant nap. But now, the quiet just seemed lonely and sad. Needing something to do to keep her mind off the clock, she opened the paper only for the clock hands to move. Harry and Ron were home. She stood and poured two cups of tea as the young men walked in soberly. Both sat down at the table and muttered quiet thanks when she set the cups in front of them alone with a plate of chocolate biscuits.

"How was the visit?" She asked after sitting back down and sipping from her own cup of tea. Her voice sounded light, but the boys knew she was anxious to hear any news they had to bring.

"No change Mum. She's still gone." Ron answered after a long silence. Molly nodded lightly and fought tears that were threating to fall. Every time someone visited Hermione at St. Mungo's, Molly would ask if there was any change in her memory. Every time, she received the same answer: "She's still gone."

The matriarch remembered the moment she and her husband had arrived at the hospital to find Viktor shouting at Yukifuma Shizuma, Japan's Chosen wizard, while being restrained by Ron and Lev . "Vhat do you mean you cannot give the potion? That's what you made it for! To cure the Memory Charm!" He shouted at the potions master. The poor man looked utterly helpless before answering the question.

"It can only be used in the first month of the memory loss and many of the ingredients are dangerous for pregnant women. If your wife drank it now, it would kill her or the baby or both." Yukifuma said loud enough for everyone around them to hear. Viktor collapsed to his knees in anguish about hearing the words. The Japanese wizard licked his lips and took a deep breath. "There is still a tiny chance you can cure her without the use of the potion. The Memory Charm can be broken on rare occasions when a powerful emotion triggers an important memory. It will start a chain reaction and the whole memory can be restored. It's one of the reasons You-Know-Who and his followers could get information from people afflicted by the charm. The torture would bring out a fear so great that it would pull the memories out in order for the person to survive."

It was then everyone had a little bit of hope. For the first few days after the attack every single family member and friend had done whatever they could think of to regain her memory. They showed her photo albums, talked to her about the past, and brought little personal things to her in hope of jogging her memory. Viktor spent the most time with her. He took a leave of absence for the rest of the Qudditch season and stayed at the hospital for as long as he could each day, talking to his wife in hopes that she would remember him. She never did. Every visit she would have to be reminded who he was, who she was, what they had been together, and that they were expecting a child.

Eventually their marriage was annulled by Ministry since the Marriage Law and all it affected was dissolved and she went back to being Hermione Granger. Gradually Viktor visited less and less. Whenever Molly saw the young man leave his love's room, she could see the sadness on his face grow a little more. She knew the visits were killing him inside little by little. He had moved out of Crystal Air and into a small two bedroom flat by Christmas and in January had told the whole family that he was thinking of retiring from Qudditch. Everyone had been shocked, but he explained that he wanted to be there for his child once it was born, since he was the only parent it would really have.

Now it was almost May, and as far as Molly knew the young man hadn't visited her 'daughter' in over a month. She wanted to say something to make her sons' go away, but what could she say when she was feeling the exact same pain? "There's some cake and tea ready," she said quietly before going to her bed room to cry a little in peace.

In a small magical town not far from the Burrow, a Krum was heading to the flat his brother had recently moved into. As he walked up the stairs he thought of the things that had changed over the past couple of months. Their mother had be devastated when they news about Hermione arrived, and the loss of her new found daughter was only made harder when Viktor had decided to move to England rather than stay in Bulgaria near his family. The only explanation that he gave was it was closer to St. Mungo's. The whole of the Krum family fell into a quiet depression. When the Seeker came to visit nobody mentioned Hermione or the baby; even young Radko seemed to understand that the subjects were taboo when his elder brother was around.

When the visiting Krum arrived to the flat he knocked on the door before entering. "Viktor? Are you here?" He called in their native tongue. Viktor walked out from a bedroom to see who his visitor was.

"Kamen, what are you doing here?" He asked with the barest hint of a smile looking down at what was obviously a bag of food in his brother's hand.

"Mama is worried you are not eating right. She sent me with this." He nodded down to the bag and went to place it on the small dining room table. He followed Viktor to the nursery, where it seemed he was in the process of hanging up a photo of the Krum family well, the Krum brothers. The room was cutely painted with rolling green hills and fluffy white sheep. Kamen knew the Quidditch player had no talent for art, so he couldn't help but wonder who had painted the whole thing. The crib and changing table were simply designed and made of rosewood that shined beautifully. A similar rocking chair sat near the window and looked out onto the quaint little town Viktor now called home. "You've done a good job. The place looks perfect."

"I still need to finish a few things, but it's mostly done." Viktor was hanging up more photos as he spoke. They were of the Krums, Weasleys, Harry and Ron, Lev and Christy, and the Bulgarian team of course. Kamen searched all the photos, but couldn't find the face of one particular.

"Viktor, where's Hermione's photos?" The father-to-be stiffened at the question.

"I haven't gotten around to putting them up yet."

"I think you should put at least one up soon. The baby is due any day right?"

"I know, but…" Viktor couldn't find the words to answer.

"I heard that you've stopped visiting her." The elder brother received no answer. "Viktor, she was your wife and is the mother to your child. Merlin's beard man, why have you given up on her?"

"I… I… I don't know!" Viktor shouted defensively. His eyes were red and watery and there was a shaking in his voice. "I tried everything I could think of Kamen! I sat and talked to her about anything I could think of that might jog her memory. Our time in school, the wedding, Opening Week, the plans we had for the future…_everything!_" He started pacing around the room as the pain became more evident in his voice. "I showed her all the pictures I had of the family, our honeymoon, and Crystal Air. But every time I did that that, it was like I was just making her more confused. And when I visited her the next day she wouldn't remember what I'd told her the previous day." Tears were now freely falling and he was taking deep gasping breaths.

Kamen let his brother talk without interrupting. He knew his little brother hadn't yet had a chance to express the full extent of his grief without feeling like a dozen people were watching.

"It's like she dies every time I leave her room. Only she isn't dead. She still breathes, eats, and sleeps. But she's not Hermione anymore and she never will be again. My wife is dead." He collapsed to his knees and started crying without restraint. His brother was quick to join him on the floor and wrap him in a protective embrace. The younger of two cried heart wrenching sobs, gasping for air.

After what seemed like hours Viktor calmed down enough to pull away his brother and wiped his eyes with the back of his hand. "I can't even put up pictures of her because when I look at them, I see all the good times we had and remember we're not going to be able to make new memories again."

Kamen nodded a little and put his hands on his brother's shoulders to look him in the eyes. "Viktor, we all love Hermione. Yes, even I came to love her and call her my sister." He said when the Seeker gave him a look. "What happened from the moment the Marriage Law was announced until now hasn't been fair to either of you." Kamen's voice was wobbly and his eyes were red from shedding tears with his brother, "But you have to be able to be strong enough to tell your child about his mother. He will need to know who she was. You will need to be able to him that you loved her and the both of love him, no matter what." Viktor nodded, but tears were still running down his face. His brother once again held him close and let him cry. How long they stayed that way, neither would really remember, but it was that moment in time that made them closer to each other than they had been in years.

Later that night, when Kamen had gone home, Viktor started going through unopened boxes and with great care, started putting photos up one by one. Even though they had been together only a short time, he and Hermione had taken a lot of pictures together. Hermione had said it was for the sake of their children. She wanted them to have a record of their parents' lives before they'd been born. She herself had very few photos of her parents; most had been destroyed when the Grangers had been attacked.

Wedding photos went up all over the flat as did the ones they'd taken on their honeymoon. There were a few he'd taken when she wasn't looking. His favorites were when she was reading a book in the lounge at Crystal Air. She looked totally at peace with a small smile on her face. These were the photos he wanted his child to see of his mother. They weren't the posed photos taken for the newspapers and tabloids, rather, they were of the Hermione that he knew and loved.

When Viktor was finished hanging up all the photos, he went to his room and picked up a small painted oak box that sat on the bedside table. It had been months since he'd last opened the box, but now that he had looked at glimpses of happier times, he had the urge to looking inside. The plain wooden box was where he kept Hermione's engagement and wedding rings, his family crest, and the locket Molly and Arthur had given her on their wedding day. He knew if their child was a girl, then she would be given the locket just as soon as she could understand what kind of significance it held. He closed the box after staring down at the treasures for a while.

Right before the Bulgarian went to bed he looked out his window to find the North Star. Clapping his hands and turning around in circles he made his wish. The same one he made since the night Hermione had taught him the little ritual. "Please let us always be happy." he whispered in Bulgarian. No matter where Hermione was or what state she was in, he wanted her to be happy. He knew it was his duty to make sure that was possible whether they were legally married or not. He drifted into sleep feeling lighter than he had in weeks. The pain was still there, and he knew it would always be there; yet finally having a chance to let go of the pain had done him more good than all that time he had tried to repress it.

The next morning was sunny and he could tell it would be a good day for a game. After a quick shower and bite to he was about to leave when he stopped. He threw all his things on the floor and hurried to his bedroom. He opened up the little box he had looked through the previous night and pulled out one item. He was quick to go to the living room, find an envelope, scribble a quick note, and set both off with his big brown owl. Viktor was unsure of why he had the urge to send off that particular item, and why now of times, but he felt it was the right thing to do. Shaking his head he brushed off the odd feeling and headed back to the meet up with his teammates.

A/N: Well what did you think? I really wanted this chapter to be focused on Viktor. I felt his pain and struggles had to be central to the chapter after Hermione's attack. It was very hard to try and get across his feelings the way I wanted to, but I hope I did a decent job at it. As always tell me what you thought and I'll see you in the next chapter. :)


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